Bear Day
by Lord22
Summary: Over the course of twenty-four hours, Princess Azula ended the war and seized Ba Sing Se and brought her brother back into the fold. It really had been her finest moment. Unfortunately, when she wakes up the next morning she finds herself reliving that moment over, and over, and over... Timetravel. Azula centric. AzulaXHarem.
1. Second Time Around

**Chapter One: Second Time Around**

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. She turned over in her bed, then forced herself to wake up. Sitting up she brushed aside her hair and made her way to the door of her room. Then she hesitated.

Something wasn't right.

Last night she'd conquered Ba Sing Se. Last night she'd moved her quarters to the Earth King's room. A final show of dominance. The Avatar was dead. Zuko had been brought back into the fold. And Uncle was a prisoner.

So what was she doing here?

She opened the door and walked in to see Mai and Ty Lee eating breakfast. Ty Lee glanced up and smiled. "Azula, you're awake. You've got to try this breakfast. They have the best sausages."

Azula could have sworn she'd heard that before.

Ty Lee looked concerned. "...Azula?"

She'd stood right there yesterday. The meal Mai and Ty Lee was eating was the same. Azula composed herself. "You said that yesterday. What are we doing back here? Where's Zuko."

The was eerie.

Mai blinked. "Zuko? I didn't even know he was in Ba Sing Se. Is he?"

Azula blinked. "We just took over Ba Sing Se. The coup succeeded completely."

Ty Lee laughed. "Oh, I get it. You must have been having a really good dream."

"Dreams don't get that lucid, Ty Lee." said Mai.

"Maybe it was a hallucination." suggested Ty Lee.

"Okay, what did we do yesterday?" asked Azula.

"Well we entered Ba Sing Se a couple of days ago pretending to be the Kyoshi Warriors and were welcomed by the Earth King." said Ty Lee. "Then you had us pretend to be idiots in front of the Dai Li so Long Feng would try to use us as a pawn. Um, you made a deal with Long Feng to command the Dai Li. We're pretending to be stupid, so he underestimates us."

"Right, right, I must have... had a very imaginative day." said Azula. "Well, no sense in altering the plan any." Had she had some kind of vision of the future. "Still, if it was only a dream Zuko won't be here."

"Zuko?" asked Mai.

Azula shrugged. "Once I've set the Dai Li in motion I've got a tea shop to visit. Oh, Mai, Ty Lee, I need you to find someone for me. Someone we didn't know was here."

"Who?" asked Mai.

"The waterbender peasant." said Azula. "Her name isn't important. The one who always accompanies the Avatar."

"What is she doing here?" asked Mai.

"Too complicated to go into now. There are some unforeseen aspects to this situation." said Azula.

* * *

Between giving commands and subtly undermining Long Feng's authority, Azula slipped down to the Jasmine Dragon. Overthrowing Long Feng had been fairly easy. The first step was impressing the Dai Li with her skills. From there, she needed only point out the obvious. That the Fire Nation was winning this war.

And that the best way to make sure Ba Sing Se's economy went undamaged was a seamless transition of power. Straight into the hands of the Fire Nation.

Of course, none of the earth peasants in this place thought about any of that. Azula walked quickly through the streets. At last, she found the Jasmine Dragon. There was Iroh and Zuko. Were they serving tea?

No wonder Zuko had been in such a hurry to defect? This must have been humiliating beyond measure. Wait, was he smiling? That was odd.

Either way, it didn't matter.

Azula made her way back. "Well, so Zuzu is here. Well, I've already put him over to my side once. I'm sure I can do it again. No sense in changing the plan any, either."

She gave orders for Iroh and Zuko to be invited to serve tea to the Earth King and then she met with the Dai Li. Standing before them, she appeared fierce. "The Earth King and the Council of Five do not trust the Dai Li. They imprisoned your leader, Long Feng. Soon they will come for you. Seizing power today is a matter of life and death.

"This coup must be swift and decisive. The Earth King and each of the five generals must be taken out simultaneously. Long Feng has placed you in my command while we overthrow the government." She went to one of the men and got close. "If I sense any disloyalty. Any hesitation. Any weakness at all, I will snuff it out.

"That is all."

They dispersed to go about their duties.

"Nice speech, Azula. It was pretty and poetic, but also scary in a good way." said Ty Lee.

"Yeah, I thought you were going to make that one guy pee his pants." laughed Mai.

Azula flinched in irritation. "I've heard this before. This exact speech. No matter. We've cleaned up the loose ends ahead of schedule."

Sure enough, Zuko and Iroh came. This time it was far earlier in the day. They looked oddly peaceful. Last time Azula had been focused on the mission, but now she knew it would work.

"What is taking so long?" asked Zuko.

"Perhaps the Earth King overslept?" suggested Uncle.

"Something isn't right." said Zuko.

Azula walked forward with her Dai Li. "As always, Zuko, your powers of observation border on passable. It's almost remarkable with your left eye."

Zuko stood and glared at her. "Azula."

"Did I ever tell you how I got the nickname, the Dragon of the West?" asked Iroh.

"Grab them. Now." said Azula.

It didn't do any better than last time. Iroh blasted the Dai Li away and blew a hole in the wall. He and Zuko fled out into the halls, and Azula pursued. Like before, Uncle escaped into the courtyard. And like before Zuko stopped at the hole in the wall.

"Hmm, I'll have to act more decisively against Uncle in the future." said Azula. "Still, it was good of you to not escape when you had the chance."

"I challenge you to an Agni Kai, Azula!" said Zuko.

"I would, but, as they say, 'when in Ba Sing Se.'" said Azula. "I'd hate to be perceived as culturally insensitive. Take him."

As the Dai Li grabbed Zuko, Azula walked back to meet with Mai and Ty Lee. "Now, we just need to attend to that waterbending peasant."

Oddly enough they ran into her by accident. She was running down the hall when she bumped into Azula, and both of them fell over. She looked up.

"Sorry," said Katara, "I was just looking for the Earth King. I need him to sign... something..." She saw Azula. "Azula, you're-"

Ty Lee hit Katara in the shoulder, and she fell to the ground unconscious. Azula stood up and picked up the scroll. "I'll be sure he gets the message."

"Ma'am, we're about to launch the operation." said a Dai Li agent.

"Very well.. Let's go speak with the Earth King." said Azula.

As they walked, Azula read the scroll. She'd heard about the eclipse before, but this battleplan was very interesting.

"What is that, Azula?" asked Ty Lee.

"Plans for an invasion of the Fire Nation." said Azula, before burning them to cinder. "Oh well."

They entered the throne room, and the Earth King looked up from petting his bear. He smiled. "Ah, the Kyoshi Warriors. How can I help you?"

"There's been a change of plans, Earth King." said Azula. "And there is going to be a change of leaders in a few moments."

"What?" said the Earth King.

Before he could move, Ty Lee leaped to land by him and knocked him unconscious. Azula walked forward and glanced to a guard. "Get him out of my sight."

As the Earth King was led away, Azula stretched and eyed the throne. She could take it now. But why waste the dramatic moment? "Well then, I do believe we've finished our schedule early in the day, haven't we ladies? Oh right, there is one other thing, isn't there?"

Long Feng came with most of the Dai Li. "Now comes the part where I double cross you. Dai Li, arrest the Fire Nation Princess." Nothing happened. "I said: Arrest her!" He looked to the Dai Li. "What is wrong with you?"

"It's because they haven't made up their minds." said Azula. "They're waiting to see how this is going to end."

"What are you talking about?" asked Long Feng.

"I can see your whole history in your eyes." said Azula. "You were born with nothing. So you've had to struggle, and connive, and claw your way to power. But true power, the divine right to rule, is something you are born with.

"The fact is: They don't know which one us is going to be sitting on that throne. But you know. And I know." She'd done this before. And it wasn't nearly as satisfying the second time around as she sat in the throne.

Long Feng kneeled. "...You've beaten me at my own-"

Azula blasted his head off with lightning. "There are only so many times I can hear the same mindless hubris before I can tired of it. Dispose of the body."

"Yes, Princess." said the Dai Li agent. "Oh, and the people you told us to watch for. They've entered the tunnels below."

Azula blinked. "Well, things are happening quickly, aren't they?

"I'll just have to go and greet them. Ty Lee, Mai, keep an eye on things here. In particular..." She looked at Bosco, the bear. She'd never seen anything like him. Suddenly she was curious. "What kind of bear is that?"

"It's a... bear?" said the Dai Li.

"What do you mean? A platypus bear? A mole bear?" asked Azula.

"No, just, a bear." said the Dai Li. "The creature is entirely unique."

Azula sighed. "Fine. Ty Lee, Mai, watch over... the bear."

"Right." said Mai.

Azula made her way outside and entered a passage made by earthbending. Slipping down it, she made her usual dynamic entry. Just like before, Zuko and Iroh were standing together. Just like before the Dai Li captured Iroh.

What she had seen had been a vision. A vision of her great victory!

"I expected this kind of treachery from Uncle." said Azula. "But you, Zuko. Prince Zuko. You're a lot of things. But you're not a traitor."

"Release him immediately." said Zuko.

"It's not too late for you Zuko; you can still redeem-" Azula stopped. Zuko's face was whole. There was no scar on it. "-what happened to your scar?"

"I..." Zuko looked away, "nothing."

"Not nothing." said Azula. "It was there when I captured you, and now it's gone.

"Nevermind.

"You have a chance to regain your honor."

"The kind of honor she offers is not for you." said Iroh.

"Why don't you let him decide, uncle?" asked Azula. Then she went near to Zuko. "I need you Zuko. I've plotted every move of this day. This glorious day in fire nation history, and the only way we win is together. At the end of this day, you will have your honor back. You will have Father's love.

"You will have everything you want."

"Zuko, I am begging you." said Iroh. "Look into your heart and see what it is that you truly want."

Azula looked to Zuko. "You are free to choose."

Then she motioned for the Dai Li with her to leave. From there she went after the Avatar alone as before. It was a perfect execution of drama.

Like before she found herself outmatched. Like before the fight was interrupted when Zuko. Like before there was a tense silence.

And then Zuko shot her in the face.

It didn't kill her.

The blast didn't leave any scars, either. As it turned out the water peasant was quite as talented as healing. Either way, that was how Azula found herself locked up in prison. The Earth King was bad on his throne. The Dai Li had been locked away as well.

As she saw her in cell with her hands bound she stared. "What!" she said finally. "I mean... I did everything the same. Everything right. I hit all the right buttons.

"How could... How could this happen?

"How could I lose?" She processed everything that had happened. Zuko had been imprisoned longer with the water peasant. "The scar. Somehow Zuko healed his scar. But how?"

She saw it.

"The water peasant." She slammed her fists against the ground. "Damn it..."

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. She turned over in her bed, then sat up. Not bothering to brush her hair out of her eyes, she stood and rushed out of the room.

Something wasn't right.

There was Ty Lee and Mai eating the exact same breakfast. In the exact same room. Ty Lee looked up happily. "Azula, you're awake. You've got to try this breakfast. They have the best sausages." She paused. "Azula?"

It hadn't been a vision. It hadn't been a dream. Azula was reliving the same day. "...What is going on?"

* * *

**Author's Note:**

I've wanted to do a Groundhog Day Loop storyline for a good long time now. Unfortunately, I could never find a character who it really worked for. In order to make the fic type work, you need to have a character who experiences a single day of immense importance.

A day with a great many possible variables at that.

Also, the character needs to be capable of developing. Certain characters are unsuitable for groundhog day loops because they are such monsters that the loops would end up being horrific. At the same time, the character has to be, at the very least, a huge jerk. Otherwise, the groundhog day loop wouldn't have a purpose.

Then I watched Crossroads of Destiny. The entire episode takes place throughout twenty-four hours, and there are a truly massive number of variables. If even one character acts slightly differently the entire plot could be derailed.


	2. Not So Final Victory

**Chapter Two: Not So Final Victory**

Azula stared as Ty Lee stood up. The former circus performer looked at her with concern. Azula hated that look of pity on her face. "You look like you didn't sleep so well? Nerves?"

Azula composed herself. "No, no, we did this already."

"Did what?" asked Ty Lee.

"This day. Yesterday you said that." said Azula.

"Said what?" asked Ty Lee.

"The thing about sausages." said Azula.

"Oh. Okay." said Ty Lee. She looked weirded out.

"It's called deja vu." said Mai.

"What?" said Azula.

"Deja vu: The feeling that one has lived a moment before." said Mai.

"Nevermind, I don't care." said Azula. "Alright, obviously getting Zuko involved too quickly leads to his scar getting healed somehow."

"Zuko?" asked Mai. "He's here."

"No." said Azula. "Of course he isn't. Just focus on the coup; you'll figure it out soon enough."

Things went much as they had before that day. Only this time Azula made sure the water peasant and Zuko didn't get locked up together just yet. Things went very smoothly, though it was irritating having to corrupt the Dai Li for the third time around.

Finally, the water peasant rushed in. In one hand was a letter. "Excuse me, I need to speak with the Earth King! I was just in town, and I think I saw Prince Zuko!"

Azula sighed. "We'll be sure he gets the message."

Ty Lee knocked her out quickly, and she was bundled away. Then, inevitably, came the part where the Dai Li assembled before them. There was Long Feng in front of her. "Now comes the part where I double cross you. Dai Li, arrest the Fire Nation Princess."

And the Dai Li moved. It took Azula completely by surprise, and in moments she had been bound and pulled to her knees. Mai and Ty Lee followed soon. Long Feng moved up the stairs.

"What?" said Azula. "What is-"

Long Feng slapped her. "You're far too trusting.

"Now that the Earth King is out of power, I suppose I'll have to find a new puppet. In the meantime, Princess Azula should prove the perfect piece to keep the Fire Nation out of here for good."

* * *

Later in a prison cell, Azula hung from the wall. Mai looked fairly unphased. "Well, this didn't go as planned."

"Shut up!" roared Azula. "How did this happen? I did everything like the first time!"

"Well, maybe you could have been a bit more personable?" said Ty Lee brightly.

"Personable?" asked Azula.

"Well at the Circus we've always been taught that you have to get into your act." said Ty Lee. "If you make your speeches like you're reading off a script, people get bored."

Azula considered that. "...Right, of course, I must have failed to weaken the Dai Li's loyalty enough."

"It doesn't matter now." said Mai. "We're in jail."

Azula smiled. "Only until next time."

"Next time? What are you..." began Mai.

* * *

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. She turned over in her bed, then sat up. With all composure, she quickly dressed herself, did up her hair and then walked out.

Ty Lee looked up. "Azula, you're awake. You've got to try this breakfast. They have the best sausages."

"Yes, yes they do." said Azula, sitting down next to them.

Mai blinked. "Hmm, you don't usually sit down with us."

"I think we'd better be prepared for today." said Azula, quickly filling her plate. "We have a very narrow margin for error today. If we make a single mistake, everything could fall apart."

Now Azula understood why these loops had happened. The Fire Nation was destined for total victory. The first time she had won. But the Avatar had escaped.

But he would not this time. This time Azula would gain total victory.

She played her part like that of a puppet master. She moved the people like pieces on a board. And she played well.

Little by little, she set up her victory. And now she knew which pieces to use to make that victory complete. Long Feng fell, and she had him thrown in prison for later.

"Princess, we've located the Avatar. He is entering the underground city." said the Dai Li, like before.

Azula rose. "Excellent. Ty Lee, Mai, come with me."

Azula followed Zuzu into the catacombs. And there he was, still scarred as he should be. She said exactly what he wanted to hear to get rid of Uncle's influence and then they left.

Coming upon the Avatar, Azula halted. "Ty Lee, stay here and wait for an opening. When the water girl is isolated, get her."

Everything proceeded as it had meant to be. And this time when Azula was cornered, Zuko came to her aid. There was a moment of staring between him and the Avatar. Then he unleashed his flames. Together, Azula and Zuko dueled with the Avatar and the water peasant.

The water peasant was skilled, and her powers could quench Azula's flames. But Zuko's had greater endurance. Little by little, they overwhelmed both of them. It was a losing battle fo the Avatar.

And then the Dai Li arrived. The water peasant was surrounded and hemmed in. In desperation, the Avatar grew crystals around himself in an attempt to shield himself. Through the crystals, Azula saw a light emanating. A light brighter than even the sun. As the rest of the room watched in awe, Azula slipped around so he wouldn't be able to see her.

Out he came, sending out a brilliant light. It was even brighter now if that was possible. And yet the light emanating from it did not hurt the eyes.

Azula sent out a brilliant light of her own and shot him in the back. The Avatar fell and landed hard on the ground. The water peasant summoned all her water to charge in and like before Iroh covered her retreat. But this time Ty Lee got her from behind, and she fell to the ground, like a puppet whose strings had been cut.

Iroh fought hard, hurling his flames everywhere to fend off the Dai Li. Zuko wouldn't attack him. But little by little he was overwhelmed, as Azula walked over to the unconscious Avatar. There was only a little life left in him. And Azula knew why she'd been repeating this day.

The Avatar had been alive. And if the water peasant had healed Zuko of his scar, surely she could have healed the Avatar of his wound. But now that could be corrected.

The water peasant was watching. Tears were in her eyes. She struggled to get up. Struggled to fight.

Azula smiled and walked toward the Avatar with slowness. How she relished the look of fear and desperation on that dark-skinned savage's face. The gaze of horror as she slowly, sensually raised a single finger.

"Please..." gasped the water peasant. "Don't kill Aang..."

Aang? Was that his name?

It didn't matter. All the water peasant could do was beg now. Beg Azula to have mercy. And if this was happening ten years ago, she might have. But the world now belonged to the Fire Nation. By the time the Avatar reincarnated it would be too late. And once the next two Avatars were gone, he would have no one to reincarnate into.

But Azula lowered her hand anyway. She pretended to turn away. To lose interest. And then she turned around and fired a lightning bolt through the Avatar's head.

The water peasant screamed in grief, swore and screamed at her. It was music to Azula's ears as she turned to walk away. Iroh was finally being overwhelmed by the Dai Li. Now he was trapped and glaring at her.

"Take Iroh and the waterbender to the prison." said Azula. "We'll deal with them later. Zuko, why don't we head upstairs."

* * *

Later within the throne room, Zuko looked conflicted. Like he had before. Azula was in a perfect mood, however. "We've done it Zuko. It's taken us a hundred years, but the Fire Nation has conquered Ba Sing Se."

"...I betrayed Uncle." said Zuko.

"No.," said Azula. "He betrayed you. Zuko, when you return home, Father will welcome you as a war hero.

"We will have killed the Avatar. We will have ended the war."

"But... I was assigned to capture the Avatar." said Zuko. "What if Father... what if he doesn't restore my honor?"

"He doesn't need to, Zuko." said Azula. "Today you restored your own honor."

Azula suddenly realized that she didn't mind reliving this moment. She'd felt like they had really connected here. After all, what better way to establish a bond between siblings than over the burned carcass of their mutual enemies.

She spent the rest of the night torturing Long Feng slowly to death. She'd lost to him yesterday, and it was a humiliation she wasn't going to repeat. Then she went to bed, looking forward to a bright future. Tomorrow she'd take her time showing an entirely different kind of dominance with that water peasant. Azula couldn't wait to feel her squirming in her grasp.

The sun would rise over a world that belonged to the Fire Nation.

Something to look forward to.

* * *

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. She turned over in her bed, then sat up. No, no this couldn't be.

She stood and walked out to find Ty Lee and Mai at the same breakfast table. Ty Lee looked up brightly like she had the last few times. "Azula, you're awake. You've got to try this breakfast. They have the best sausages."

"What... but... but I'd won." said Azula. "The Avatar was dead!"

"Azula?" said Ty Lee. "Are you alright?"

Azula looked out the window. "Ba Sing Se was ours. We'd won. We'd completely won. The day was completely perfect.

"So why am I back here?"

"Azula you don't look so good." said Mai.

"Oh, oh I don't do I? Well maybe that's because we've been here before!" cried Azula.

"Calm down Azula. If we fly off the handle we could end up dead." said Mai.

Azula looked out. It didn't matter if she'd won. She'd just end up back here. "No, no, I am not doing this again."

"What do you mean?" asked Ty Lee.

"We're leaving Ty Lee. Pack your things. We're getting out of Ba Sing Se." said Azula.

"But what about the coup?" asked Mai.

It wouldn't due to let Long Feng win. "Hmm, excellent point. Go tell the Earth King what Long Feng is plotting, then let's get out of here!"

"Are you... serious?" asked Mai.

Azula hurled a fireball that blew up the table. "Never more so! I've got to get out of this city!"

The gates were shut. The trains had all been left where they were. Azula rushed up to the guards, who barred her path.

"You!" she said. "What is the meaning of this?!"

"There is nothing going on, the gates are closed." said the guard. "We've got a huge sandstorm coming in from the desert."

Azula stood up tall. "Tell me, does the weather command this city?"

"Actually it commands pretty much everything." said the man. "Now back off."

"Get out of my way! I'm leaving Ba Sing Se!" said Azula.

The guard sighed. "Look, lady. You can go back to Ba Sing Se. Or you can get your skin flayed off by a massive sandstorm. Your choice."

Azula looked back to the city. Then to the way out. Walking into the middle of a sandstorm would almost certainly lead to a horrible death. On the other hand, going into Ba Sing Se would result in being in Ba Sing Se another day. "...Give me a moment to consult with my advisors."

She walked over to Mai and Ty Lee. Ty Lee was doing handstands, while Mai had her arms crossed. "What do we do now?"

"I... I..." Azula sighed. "I need a drink."

* * *

It was a seedy tavern. Azula sipped a beer while a bar fight broke out to the left. She'd never drunk this kind of low-quality beer before, and it was a far cry from the wine she was used to. Even so, she couldn't bring herself to care. Mai looked at her with raised eyebrows. "So, we've gone from plotting the downfall of a city to drinking while underage."

"No, I told you! It doesn't matter!" said Azula. "Every time I win I just end up back here! We've got to find a way to get out of this city before the day is over!"

"...Maybe we could dig our way out." said Ty Lee.

Azula blinked. "Yes, yes of course. We'll use the underground city to escape and then-"

And then swords were set to their throats. Dozens of guards filed in. "You're under arrest, Princess Azula."

"What are you..." Azula paused. "I didn't even do anything this time!"

Yet another night in prison.

* * *

** Author's Note:**

Azula seems to be doing the Groundhog Day a bit out of order. Traditionally the person is initially surprised; then they spend their time being a jerk and enjoying themselves. Then eventually they start trying to make the perfect day.

Unfortunately, Azula's idea of a perfect day is very different from that of everyone else. So it doesn't take.


	3. Defiance

**Chapter Three: Defiance**

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. She turned over in her bed, then sat up. Immediately she threw on her clothes and rushed out the door. There was Ty Lee and Mai sitting in that same damn desk.

"Azula, you're awake. You've got to try this breakfast." said Ty Lee. "They have the best sausages-"

"Forget the damn sausages! We're leaving, now!" yelled Azula.

"But what about-" began Mai.

"No time for it." said Azula.

"But how-" said Ty Lee.

"No time for that either. Follow me." said Azula.

Once again they went down into the catacombs. Ty Lee looked at the crystals with interest, while Mai looked as bored as ever. Azula realized she hadn't brought them down here before. Or been down here herself except while looking for Zuko.

It was actually pretty nice.

"How do you even know about this place?" asked Mai.

"I read about it on a map." lied Azula. "We've got to get out of Ba Sing Se as quickly as possible." She made her way into the place where she had fought the Avatar before. "Now we just need to, yes, yes this is where the way lead out. We'll just scale up that waterfall and be home free."

It was that same waterfall the water peasant had escaped through.

"...So, we're going to scale up a waterfall?" asked Mai.

"Yes." said Azula.

"How?" asked Mai.

Azula thought about how to answer that. "...We'll climb."

Running toward the wall, she leaped into the air and tried to get a grip on the cave wall. She promptly slipped off, fell into the river and hit her head on a rock. Everything went black.

* * *

She awoke.

In a prison cell. Ty Lee was looking over her. "Azula, thank goodness your awake. You got seriously hurt in that fall."

"Why are we in prison?" asked Azula.

"Well um, that waterbender girl helped us." said Ty Lee. "And then reported us."

"Ugh..." Azula stood up and bashed her head against the wall.

* * *

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. She turned over in her bed, then sat up in a rage. She stormed out and found Ty Lee and Mai at the table like always.

"Azula, you're awake. You've got to try this breakfast. They have the best-"

Azula turned over the table and sent the dishes flying across the floor. Many of them shattered. "I don't want sausages, damn it!" She took a deep breath. "I've got to get a meeting with the Earth King."

The Earth King looked at her sympathetically while petting Bosco, the Bear. "So you need to leave the city?"

"Yes." said Azula. "I need special authorization to get out."

"I don't see why you'd need that." said the Earth King. "People are always free to leave and enter Ba Sing Se, as long as they have the proper channels."

"But..." Azula paused. "Didn't you shut down the gates pending a sandstorm?"

Oh yes, that. Well I suppose you could wait a day." said the Earth King.

"I really can't." said Azula.

"Why are you in such a hurry?" asked the Earth King.

"Some... family matters came up." said Azula. "I really need to get back home."

"Well going into the middle of a sandstorm would get you killed." said the Earth King.

"Don't you have some kind of secret passage that you can use to escape the city in times or peril." said Azula. "Or if royalty needs to move about unseen."

"Which one is this?" asked Earth.

"It's both!" said Azula. "I'm a Princess of the Fire Nation in an emergency!"

And that was how she ended up in prison again.

* * *

Next loop around Azula tried again.

"It's an emergency." said Azula.

"Sorry," said the Earth King, "that isn't the sort of thing I can reveal to just anyone. Don't worry. By tomorrow the sand will have blown over."

"Well what is there is no tomorrow?!" asked Azula. "There wasn't one today!"

Then she ended up in prison for raising her voice in front of the Earth King.

The next time she marked out with renewed purpose.

Ty Lee opened her mouth. Azula covered it. "Mai, Ty Lee, if you were going to scale a waterfall how would you go about it?"

"Well we could get climbing equipment." said Mai. "But what-"

"Get it." said Azula. "Get it quickly!"

"But what about the coup?" asked Mai.

"The coup can go straight to-"

* * *

Azula ended up in prison again.

"Wow, who would have thought that that waterbender would spot us while we were buying climbing supplies." said Ty Lee.

"No, no, no, no!" snarled Azula. "No, no, stay calm Azula. I'll just wait until next time."

* * *

This time Azula slipped into the store and stole what she needed with no one the wiser. Getting Mai and Ty Lee to go with her into the catacombs they scaled up the wall gradually.

At that point, she heard voices.

"These catacombs used to be an ancient city. Ba Sing Se was built over these ruins, and we've been working to excavate them." said the Earth King. "I'm glad you're interested."

"Well I like learning new things." said the water peasant. "I'll have some stories to tell Gran Gran when I get back."

Looking down, she saw the water peasant and the Earth King entering. They froze, and the water peasant saw her. "Azula!"

What were they even doing here?

She woke up to find Ty Lee staring down at her. "Azula, thank Agni your awake! You nearly died in the fall!"

"Are we in prison again?" asked Azula.

"Nope!" said Ty Lee. "We're in prison for the first time!"

Azula covered her eyes with her hands.

* * *

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. She got out of bed with shaking fists. That was the last time that water peasant interfered with her plans. She quickly stood and wrote out a note, just to spite Long Feng. Then she stormed out with her teeth gritted.

Ty Lee beamed. "Azula, you're awake. You've got to try this breakfast. They have the best sausages."

Azula grabbed some rope and stormed out of the room. Ty Lee and Mai walked after her. "Um, Azula, where are you going?"

"To get rid of a nuisance." snarled Azula.

She found the water peasant as she was leaving the war room. Azula tapped her on the shoulder. "Excuse me."

"Yes?" asked the water peasant.

Azula punched her in the face. She hit the ground like a sack of potatoes, and Azula put a foot on her neck. Then she drew out the rope. "I need a moment of your time, water peasant."

Tying up the water peasant was immensely satisfying. Not only was she a constant nuisance, but she also was nice to look at. She liked the feel of her struggling against her grasp. The way she struggled as Azula carried her into a room and tossed her into a broom closet was immensely satisfying.

"So why are we locking this girl in a broom closet?" asked Mai.

"MMMPH!" scream the water peasant.

"I need to get her out of my hair long enough to complete my plan to get out of Ba Sing Se." said Azula.

Mai blinked. "But I thought we were-"

Azula shut the door. "Quiet! They may hear! They're always watching, always trying to stop me! But we will be cunning! So cunning!"

"Azula, you are really weirding me out." said Ty Lee.

Azula shoved the letter into Ty Lee's hands. "Send this letter to the Earth King. Then meet me at the crystal catacomb city thing."

"But Azula-" began Ty Lee.

"No time!" cried Azula, before storming off.

She made her way to the entrance of the caverns. There she waited, pacing back and forth. Mai and Ty Lee did not come. Azula tore at her hair. "Where are they?!

"They wouldn't be delayed like this. There must be something else. Yes, someone else is plotting against me. Making me relive the same day over and over. But I won't keep reliving it. I will escape.

"Will escape.

"Where are Mai and Ty Lee?"

At that moment a group of Earthbenders appeared all around her. "Excuse me; we're going to have to ask you to come with us."

Prison. She was not going to prison again.

"Never!" cried Azula, summoning a lightning bolt.

And then she was slammed by a wave of earth.

* * *

Azula woke later in prison. Ty Lee and Mai were looking at her in concern.

"Um, Azula, sorry we were late." said Ty Lee.

"Where were you?!" asked Azula. "You were supposed to meet me in the ancient city!"

"You didn't tell us where that was." noted Mai.

"Yes, yes, that is what they want you to think!" cried Azula.

* * *

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. Azula stood but did not go into the breakfast room. She would meet Ty Lee, and Ty Lee would say the words. Instead, she paced back and forth.

There were so many people interfering. People stopping her from winning. Ruining her perfect world.

"Need to get them out of my hair. Our of my hair. Out of my hair..." said Azula. Then she saw herself in the mirror. She had lots of hair. Hair disheveled from sleeping. Disobedient hair. Not doing what it was supposed it. She snatched up scissors and grabbed the hair in front of her face. "That's it hair! Prepare to meet your doom!"

And she cut it off. Her enemy was slain.

Then Mother was there. "Oh, such a shame. You had such nice hair."

"Shut up, Mother!" said Azula. "Leave me alone!"

"You shouldn't shout, dear. You might upset your friends." said Mother.

"Quiet!" roared Azula, before shooting a lightning bolt through the mirror.

She rushed out into the breakfast room. "Azula, Mai, Ty Lee! Up! We've got work to do!"

Ty Lee blinked. "...But you're Azula."

"I know!" snarled Azula.

She half donned her Kyoshi Warrior Makeup and then stormed out of the palace. She made her way through the streets. Tricky streets. Dangerous streets. Streets had it out for her.

They were all watching! All watching!

She came to the door. There were the guards. "You, step aside now!"

"Don't tell me what to do, lady." said the guard. "We've got a massive sandstorm coming in from-"

Azula shot him in the face with a lightning bolt. She unleashed a flurry of flames that blasted the other guards away; then she ran out into the fields. Yes, yes she was out! Out at last!

"What are we doing, Azula?" asked Ty Lee. "Why did we have to shoot those people?!"

"Shut up!" cried Azula. "Shut up! We made it! We are out! Quickly, we have to go now!"

"Azula, remind me why we're going to all this trouble to leave the city we were trying to take over?" asked Mai.

"We have to get away!" said Azula. "They're always watching!"

"Get away from what?" asked Ty Lee.

"You should calm down, dear." said Mother.

"Shut up Mother!" snarled Azula. "You can't stop me!"

"Azula look! A sand storm!" said Ty Lee.

"I don't care! We go through!" snarled Azula.

The sandstorm washed over them.

* * *

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. Azula stood, feeling utterly dead. As soon as the sandstorm had hit her, she'd been back here.

She stood and walked out of the room. There was Ty Lee and Mai. Again. And now Ty Lee was going to say it. "Azula, you're awake. You've got to try this breakfast. They have the best sausages."

"You should eat something dear. You need to keep up your strength." said Mother.

"Get... get out of my head!" cried Azula. "Leave me alone, Mother! You left! You left! You can't just come back now!" She fell to her knees.

"Azula, are you alright?" asked Ty Lee as she ran forward.

As she did Azula saw the window. An open window. It was leading to the city of Ba Sing Se. The city she couldn't escape. Or could she? "No, no I won't go on like this! I won't!"

Death first!

Azula rushed out the window and leaped down toward the courtyard below.

"Azula!" cried Ty Lee.

Azula hit the ground, and everything went black.

* * *

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. She was still alive. The fall had not killed her. She stood and walked out and saw the same damn scene once again.

"Azula, you're awake. You've got to try this breakfast. They have the best..." began Ty Lee, as Azula walked past her. "...sausages."

"Where are you going?" asked Mai.

"To fill up a bath." said Azula.

"Oh." said Ty Lee. "But don't you usually bathe at night."

"Usually." said Azula.

She plugged the bath, turned on the water and watched. Watched as the water filled up inch by inch. Foot by foot. When it was filled, she turned it off, stripped off her clothes and lay down in it.

Then she fired a lightning bolt into the tub.

There was a flash of light.

* * *

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. She was still alive. The lightning hadn't made a difference. She walked out of the room and saw the same scene.

"Azula, you're awake. You've got to try this breakfast." began Ty Lee. "They have the best..."

"Not now Ty Lee." said Azula. "Mai, could I borrow one of your knives."

Mai drew out a dagger and tossed it to her. Azula caught it and mused that it was a bit small for her purposes. Even so, beggars couldn't be choosers.

The knowledge that she had become a beggar made it that much easier to stab herself in the gut.

It hurt. A lot. She fell to the ground as Mai, and Ty Lee rushed to her. Azula drew out the knife and watched as her blood coated the carpet. As her vision faded, she smiled.

* * *

She awoke in a prison.

"...Why am I alive?" asked Azula.

"Well the good news is that the water peasant knows how to heal stomach wounds." said Mai. "The bad news is she recognized us and got us thrown in prison."

"Oh no." said Azula.

* * *

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. She had botched the job. She wouldn't botch it this time.

She walked into the room and found Ty Lee and Mai waiting. "Azula-" began Ty Lee.

"I don't want any breakfast!" snarled Azula. Then she took a deep breath. "Mai, could I borrow a knife?"

Mai presented a knife.

"A bit longer." said Azula.

Mai presented a longer knife. Azula smiled. "Thank you."

This time she stabbed herself in the throat.

* * *

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. The knife had failed her for the last time. She would use another means.

She made her way out. "Azula-" began Ty Lee.

"I don't care." said Azula, before opening the packs. Where had she put that rope?

"What are you looking for?" asked Mai.

"Rope." said Azula. "I think it would look good on that chandelier up there."

"But why would you-" began Ty Lee.

Azula found the rope and made her way up to the table. She drew out a chair. "Can I borrow this chair? Thanks."

Standing up on it she tied the rope to the chandelier and then tied a noose. From there she fitted it around her neck and pulled it tight.

"Azula what are you-" began Ty Lee.

Azula kicked the chair away. She felt the rope constricting around her neck. She couldn't breathe. She didn't care.

"No! Cut the rope! Cut the rope!" cried Ty Lee.

A knife slashed through the rope, and Azula fell and hit her head on the table.

She woke up in a prison. "What happened?"

"Well after you got knocked unconscious I had to take charge of capturing the Earth King." said Mai. "I did manage to get that far. Corrupting the Dai Li? Not so much."

"It doesn't matter." said Azula.

* * *

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. He execution had been faulty. This time she stormed into the room.

"Azula-" began Ty Lee.

"Shut up! I don't want breakfast!" cried Azula.

Finding a rope, she quickly set it up like before. Then she high kicked Mai in the face. She landed unconscious on the ground. Azula then put the rope around her neck and kicked the chair away.

"Azula!" cried Ty Lee.

Azula smiled.

* * *

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. Alive. Still alive.

_"It makes me sad when you kill yourself, dear."_ said Mother._ "Maybe you should play with your friends instead."_

Nothing helped.

Azula rose up and walked out. Waiting for Ty Lee to say the same damn thing as always.

"Azula..." Ty Lee paused. "Azula you look terrible. Did you sleep bad or something?"

Azula needed to get out of here. "...I'm going to go get some tea. Are you coming?"

"What about the coup?" asked Mai.

"It'll work itself out." said Azula in defeat.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

And here we have chapter three of Bear Day. I'd like to apologize for not getting out a new chapter of Reign of Azula. I've gotten stuck on the Ember Island Players. Bear Day is a lot easier to write.


	4. The Plan

**Chapter Four: The Plan**

This was the first time Azula had seen Uncle's tea shop. It was fairly nice. For a peasants area. Well, maybe someone in the middle class. She, Mai and Ty Lee entered, seeing numerous people serving tea

And lo and behold here came Zuzu. He was clad in a teamakers uniform with an apron and wasn't looking at them. "Welcome to the Jasmine Dragon, how can I-" He halted as he processed who they were. Before he could finish Azula put a finger to his lips.

"Table for three, Zuzu. Make a sound, and I'm burning this place to the ground." she walked past.

"What is-" began Mai.

"No, no, we're talking about me." said Azula. "I've already explained this to you several loops ago."

"What do you mean by loops?" asked Mai as they sat down.

Azula considered this. "...Where to begin?"

At that point Uncle came up, eyeing them warily. "Greetings Ladies, welcome to the-"

"Go away." said Azula flatly. "We're here for tea."

Uncle sighed. "...If you insist."

And he left. Zuko seen came by and gave them menus. Azula looked through it, enjoying his nervousness. "...Ugh, I far prefer wine to this sort of thing." said Azula. "I'll have the special, whatever it is."

"And you?" asked Zuzu.

Mai shifted. "...What do you recommend?"

"Uncle has always been fond of white dragon tea." said Zuko.

"I'll have that, then." said Mai.

"I'll have it as well." said Ty Lee.

As Zuko walked off to get their orders, Mai looked to Azula. "What is all this about?"

Azula sighed. Then she explained. As she did, Mai listened carefully. "So, you're reliving the same day over and over?"

"Yes. I managed to capture Ba Sing Sei and kill the Avatar, but it just reset." said Azula. "I accomplished everything I wanted to accomplish, but it just slips away."

"Is this some really sick joke?" asked Mai.

"Why would I abandon my plan to go have tea and make a joke like this?" asked Azula.

Mai shifted. "Spite?"

They didn't believe her.

"Couldn't we stop it?" asked Ty Lee.

"I tried. Every time I try to leave Ba Sing Se I get hit by a sandstorm." said Azula. "It never stops the Avatar or anyone else, but whenever I get out, it hits me. Even dying doesn't stop it."

"Dying?" asked Ty Lee.

"Yes." said Azula. "I have been hung, electrocuted, and stabbed. I've fallen to my death and picked a fight with the Avatar. And every time I just wake up this morning with Mother talking to me."

"But I like to see how you are doing." said Mother.

"Shut up." said Azula.

"I didn't-"

"Not you." said Azula. "Mother."

"Um, well, maybe you should try relaxing a bit." said Ty Lee.

"Relax?" asked Azula. "Have you heard a word I've said?! What would you do? If every single day was the same if nothing you did had the slightest bit of significance?"

"...You could consider it an opportunity." said Mai.

"Opportunity? What do you mean?" asked Azula. "No matter what I achieve everything resets."

"Well yes." said Mai. "But, if you think about it, every time you do anything bad, everyone forgets about it. So if you are reliving today, you can do whatever you want. You don't have to worry about the consequences."

Azula leaned back in her chair as the tea arrived. She sipped it thoughtfully. "...You know what Mai, you're absolutely right."

And then she fired a lightning bolt into Uncle's back. Zuko looked up. "Uncle!"

Before he could move Azula unleashed a barrage of flames. He deflected them, and they passed firebolts back and forth.

"Firebenders! Run!" cried a woman, as they fled.

Azula tripped Zuko up and slammed him against one of the tables. Then, summoning her flames, she started firing at the fleeing patrons. "You go through life with all these stupid rules! 'Don't torture the innocent turtleducks, Azula!' 'You shouldn't set fire to the villager's houses, they need them to live.' Oh right, and the last one." She turned to Mai and Ty Lee. "Don't set your friends on fire."

"Well, that's actually one I agree with, Azula." said Ty Lee.

"I'm not going to play by Mother's rules anymore." said Azula.

And then everything went white as Azula felt flames consumed her.

* * *

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. She stood up with new energy and quickly brushed her hair. Walking out into the room she emerged into a room with new opportunities.

There was Ty Lee and Mai, as usual. "Azula, you're awake. You've got to try this breakfast. They have the best sausages."

"I'm sure they do." said Azula, sitting down at the table. "In fact, why don't we order several more. And also cups of tea while we're at it."

"Um, okay." said Ty Lee, weirded out.

They ordered several plates, and Azula ate more than she ever had in years. What did it matter? The day would just reset later. Mai and Ty Lee stared at her.

"Um, Azula, are you sure you should eat that much?" asked Ty Lee.

"I've decided I'm going to live for the moment today." said Azula. "Now, I think we ought to go to a zoo near here."

"A zoo?" asked Mai, raising an eyebrow.

"What about the coup?" asked Ty Lee.

Azula leaned back in her seat. "You don't need to worry, Mai. I've got all that figured out. There isn't going to be a tomorrow. So why worry?"

"So we're going to go look at a bunch of animals?" asked Mai.

"We'll do more than look." said Azula.

* * *

Several loops later, the Avatar stared in horror at the zoo. Animals ran screaming, squawking and crying while on fire. Azula laughed maniacally as she chased the pathetic turtle ducks. The Dai Li and Earth Military had come in to try and stop her, but she'd learned their patterns over the loops.

Many of them lay dead or defeated.

The visitors to the Zoo had long since fled. Azula noted with irritation that Ty Lee and Mai had made a break for it in all the confusion.

"Why would you hurt all these innocent animals?!" cried the Avatar.

Azula considered the question. "Just a general, all-purpose, loathing I suppose. I like the sounds they make when they get set on fire."

This time when she ended up in prison she had plans. Big plans.

For so long she'd been held back. Unable to do what she wanted to do because it wasn't pragmatically appropriate. But now she no longer had those restrictions.

Tomorrow she would burn Ba Sing Se to the ground.

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. Murdering defenseless animals had been fun. She'd always wanted to massacre a zoo. But it was time to move on to bigger game.

She walked out. "Both of you get your outfits on. We've got work to do."

"The coup?" asked Mai.

"No, just a meeting with the Earth King." said Azula.

"Really?" asked Ty Lee. "Why?"

"You'll see." said Azula.

So it was that they got dressed and went to see the Earth King.

"Your majesty," said Azula, "I have terrible news. Three spies have infiltrated your palace and are planning to assassinate you."

"Really?" said the Earth King. "Who are these spies?"

"Us." said Azula.

And then she shot him with a lightning bolt.

Instantly the guards emerged into the room. But Azula threw a wall of flame at them. They screamed as their flesh was melted from their bones. More came, only to be pinned to the wall by Mai's knives.

"What did you do that for?!" asked Ty Lee.

"Not right now." said Azula. "Into the passages!"

Without any other option, they followed her. Azula shot a lightning bolt that blasted three guards dead. A troop of them rushed around the corner, only to be caught by Ty Lee. She knocked them all unconscious with her chi blocking.

More guards came from all around. No matter how many they killed, there were always more. Soon, Mai was out of daggers. Then a hand of stone gripped Ty Lee's throat and crushed it.

Everything slowed to a crawl. Azula saw her body fall limply to the ground. Ty Lee was dead. This couldn't be happening.

They'd pay for this. They would all pay

With a scream of rage, she unleashed an inferno which burned through the walls themselves. She killed dozens of the guards. They were reduced to blackened corpses one after the other.

And then everything went black.

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. Ty Lee had died. She'd watched her die. It had hurt. Sure, she'd known it was all going to reset. But she'd still gotten angry. Even now the thought of Ty Lee's lifeless eyes stuck in her memory.

She didn't want to go through that again.

Azula decided she was going to have to be more subtle about this. Burning down Ba Sing Se with her bare hands wasn't practical, anyway. So she sat up reluctantly and made her way out.

There was Ty Lee, alive and well.

"Azula, you're awake. You've got to try this breakfast." said Ty Lee. "They have the best... sausages." She trailed off as Azula hugged her.

Then Azula broke it. She didn't know why she'd done that. "...Mai, if you were going to destroy a city with only three people, how would you do it?"

Mai looked at her suspiciously. "Why are you asking me?"

Azula shrugged. "No reason. I'm just curious."

Mai considered this. She was the expert on watching the world burn after all. She had probably fantasized about it. "Well, first you'd have to remove the people who would stop you from burning it all. Otherwise, they'd overwhelm you. Also, if you wanted to destroy this city, you'd have to get rid of all the earthbenders. Otherwise, they might stop the fire.

"You'd also need to find a way to start large fires very quickly. Ordinary people could control the blaze. The hardest part would be in the richer districts. Things aren't so tightly packed there."

"Um, why are we talking about burning down Ba Sing Se?" asked Ty Lee.

"It's all theoretical. Today, at least." said Azula. "How would we be able to spread the fire?"

"If we got a truly massive gust of wind it could work." said Mai.

"Wind. As in, airbending." noted Azula.

"Not necessarily." said Mai. "If the fire was started at a point where the wind was high enough it could be blown all over the place.

"But good luck being able to predict that."

Azula thought about things. "...Alright then. Operation: Destroy Ba Sing Se is go."

"What?" said Ty Lee. "But you said it was theoretical."

"In this loop, Ty Lee. I'm reliving today over and over again." said Azula. "Today we're just going to do research.

"Now, we need to find a way to test when the wind is blowing in every part of the city. And we need to somehow get all the data here in time for me to memorize it."

"What about the coup?" asked Mai.

"Been there, done that." said Azula.

Burning down Ba Sing Se would take a lot of work. But it would be well worth it.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

Here is chapter 4.

One of the key differences in this groundhog day loop is that Azula isn't just a jerk. She is also actively evil. So she's perfectly willing to kill people. Which adds another layer to the traditional formula.

Enjoy.


	5. Measuring the Wind

**Chapter Five: Measuring the Wind**

Azula and her cohorts made their way into the town after a bit of research. A lot of research, actually. She'd had to ask the Earth King if there was any way to measure the wind. Then he'd pointed her in the direction of several 'experts' who turned out to be frauds. The man really was breathtakingly incompetent.

Azula had to spend the next few days asking around. Eventually, she heard about a machine shop that operated in one of the lower districts. Of course, by the time she'd learned that it was almost night. So she ended up having to sleep on it.

And of course, she ended up in prison when the water peasant stumbled across her by chance. Again.

* * *

The next loop they went straight to the shop. Then they got lost, sidetracked, and eventually thrown in prison. How did this keep happening to them?

Eventually, they found it. The shop was a one-story building. Within it, she found a large man fiddling with machines. He looked up in surprise as she entered. He had a long, brown beard, and gray eyes.

"Good evening." he said. "How can I help you?"

"Hello." said Azula. "I'm told you possess machines capable of measuring the wind."

"Yes." said the man. "The anemometer. They were invented by the Air Nomads back in the old days to test students skill. Fine invention. Though it took us a little while to figure out how to replicate them."

"Well I'd like to buy one." said Azula.

"Of course." said the man. "Right this way."

He led them through the isles and came to the device. Azua noted it. It didn't look very impressive.

"What exactly do you plan to do with it?" asked the man.

"I'm interested to know more about the wind currents in Ba Sing Se." said Azula. "Which areas get hit the hardest. That kind of thing."

"Well, that sounds fairly interesting. You'll want to put it up on a rooftop, though." said the man. "That'll get you the best result."

Azula paused. "Tell me, where do you think the best place would be?"

"Well in this district?" asked the man. "That would be the old belltower. Used to be used to call town meetings. But it hasn't been used in a long time."

"Why not?" asked Ty Lee.

"Erm, the Dai Li make most of the decisions these days." said the man in a low tone. "They run almost everything, and have, ever since the old Earth King died."

"Why-" began Ty Lee.

"How much for the anemometer?" asked Azula. She didn't want to hear any more about this city.

Later as they walked away, Azula looked at the device that had taken. She smiled. It would take a while. But soon her plans would come about. "Now, we'll be able to test where the winds are coming in.

"Mai, do you have those writing materials?"

"Yes." said Mai. "But it won't do any good."

Azula glanced back in surprise. "What do you mean?"

"If you're right, and time is looping, then tomorrow any notes we make will have never existed." said Mai.

Azula considered that. "Good point. Fine. We'll spend the first half of today writing down the wind speeds on this rooftop. Then at noon I'll spend the rest of the day memorizing them."

"What about the second half of the day?" asked Mai.

"I'll do the other half the next day." said Azula.

"You'll have no time to memorize them." noted Mai.

Azula realized she was right. "...Fine. I'll memorize them as they come. If worst comes to worst, we can go through this again."

"Hey Azula!" said Ty Lee. "I got those coats you wanted. They should keep off the winds."

Azula blinked. She looked at the furry coats. They looked like they could do the job but... "Why pink?"

"What?" said Ty Lee. "You don't like them?"

"Dislike is too weak a word." said Mai. "How many buildings are we doing Azula?"

"All of them." said Azula.

"All of them?" asked Mai.

"Yes." said Azula. "When I'm done this entire city will lie in ashes."

Mai sighed. "...This is going to take a lot of work."

"I know." said Azula. Then she considered just how many buildings she'd have to look at. And then that she would have to remember them all.

And so the testing began. They got to the top of the belltower and set up the device. They then took turns sitting on the roof, writing down the wind speeds and time. It was boring, chilly, and deeply unpleasant.

When they were done, Azula returned to Ba Sing Se and spent hours memorizing everything on it. Apparently, the coup had failed and been defeated during that time. Oh well.

This was horribly dry reading material. The only thing that kept Azula reading was the knowledge that it would disappear in a few hours. And as she did, all she could see was days and days like this one, studying endless reports on wind conditions.

Was this really worth the effort?

Of course not.

* * *

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. This had all taken far too long. She decided that Mai had had a point. Azula had never had much patience for book learning, not like Zuzu. It was much easier to learn by doing. So she stood and got her hair tied together.

There was Ty Lee and Mai. Ty Lee was about to make her usual greeting when Azula put a hand over her mouth. "Okay, change of plans. We aren't going to do every building in the city."

"What?" said Mai.

"Instead we'll find the highest building in each district and measure that." said Azula. "Once we've got a general idea of how the wind blows we can experiment with starting fires. We'll correct any errors we might have then."

"Azula..." said Mai.

"This plan will take diligence and a great deal of work." decided Azula.

"Azula..." said Mai.

"But if we succeed this miserable city will be wiped from the face of the world, once and for all!" continued Azula.

"Azula!" said Mai.

"What?" said Azula, surprised to see her raising her voice.

"What are you talking about?" asked Mai.

Azula sighed. "...Oh right. I suppose I'll have to explain things again."

* * *

One explanation later and a purchased anemometer, Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee left. They made their way through the streets. It was a less prosperous district they were walking through. The peasants here had a smell to them, and they were dirtier than the others.

Sure enough, one of them approached her. He was an old man, maybe sixty or seventy. His face was haggard, and he had thin hair and a balding head. "Excuse me, could you spare a few coins-"

Azula shoved him to the ground. He hit the ground and fell there. "Out of the way begger. I've no time for you."

Then she stalked on past. Glancing back, she saw the man stand and limp off, sobbing slightly. Pathetic.

"Azula, that was a bit mean." said Ty Lee.

"I can't stand paupers." snapped Azula. "If they hate being poor so much, why don't they just leap off a bridge and reduce the surplus population. They would actually be providing a service in death they could never match in life."

They reached the building they were going to. And this time they didn't get lost at all. It helped that it was the tallest building they had scaled so far, another belltower. Only this one had had it's top blown off by something. Perhaps in Uncle Iroh's siege of Ba Sing Se?

Certainly, the building looked like it had taken a beating. As Azula scaled up the steps, she saw holes in the wall where stones had hit it. The masonry was falling out, and the mortar was loose. Once Mai tripped on a loose stone and nearly smashed her head on the steps.

Even so, they finally reached the top. And Azula had to admit; this tower had a nice view. She could see practically the entire inner city here. From the palace to the inner wall.

They set up shop and waited. This time Azula had sent Mai to get the coats. So they were pure black instead of pink. Next time Azula would just buy them herself.

It was midway through the operation when they heard voices coming from the stair. "Come on, Lee. This way. This is the best sight in the city."

"Wonderful, more paupers." said Azula with a sigh.

Up the stairs came a brown haired girl with unkept hair, walking with a boy. Azula wondered if she might be able to get some sport from the girl. There were certainly no witnesses, and she could like she might be fun to pin down. Probably a struggler.

Then Azula paused as she saw who she was talking to. Ty Lee blinked from where she was doing hand stands. "Wait, is that..."

"Azula." said Zuko as he saw her.

The girl paused. "Hmm, do you know each other? And isn't that a Fire Nation name?"

"...Our Father was Fire Nation." admitted Zuko suddenly. He said it as though it were some great crime.

"Really? So you're brother and sister?" asked the girl.

"Technically." said Azula, deciding to play along. If she revealed who she was, Zuko could blow the whistle on her. "What are you doing here, Zuzu?"

"Lee." said Zuko. "My name is Lee."

"Have it your way, Lee." said Azula. "What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same question." noted Zuko.

"Measuring the wind in this area of town. What about you?" asked Azula.

"Well, I was showing Lee around. I'm Jin." said the girl. "Nice to meet you. So why are you measuring the wind?"

Azula paused. "Alright, I confess. It is my intention to burn this entire miserable city to the ground. To this end, I am measuring the winds in the various areas of town in the hope of ensuring the optimal spread of fire."

Jin laughed. Zuko did not. His eyes narrrowed. "...Why would you want to destroy Ba Sing Se?"

"It's a joke obviously." said Azula. "Is it so hard to believe that I'm curious?"

"Do you want the answer to that?" asked Zuko.

Jin paused. "...So, who are your friends?"

"I am Mai." said Mai, glaring at Jin.

"I'm Ty Lee. I used to work at the circus." said Ty Lee.

"Wow, you must have worked alongside Lee then." said Azula.

"No, different circuses." said Zuko. "Our family broke up when we were young."

"Yes, Zuzu, why don't you tell us about your adventures in the circus?" said Azula. This was surprisingly entertaining.

"Well... why don't you..." began Zuko. "Shut up."

Jin looked at both of them. "Right, so um, I can tell you have... history. What brought you to Ba Sing Se?"

"Just a general all-purpose hatred." said Mai.

"Hatred of what?" asked Jin.

"Everything." said Mai. "Azula, I've got the wind readings for this hour here."

"Thank you Mai." said Azula. "Keep up the good work."

Jin looked between Azula and Zuko. "Well, this has been really... enlightening. I think we ought to go now, though, wouldn't you say, Lee?"

"Yes." said Zuko. "That's probably smart."

They turned and left.

"So what's with that nickname? Uh, Zuzu?" asked Jin.

"Don't ask." said Zuko.

"But-" began Jin.

"Just. Don't." said Zuko.

As their voices faded away, Ty Lee blinked. "When do you think Zuko worked in the circus?"

"Just focus on the job, Ty Lee." said Azula.

"But I am. I'll bet Zuko made a great fireeater." said Ty Lee.

They finished the work. Later that night, while trying to memorize the wind currents, Azula was arrested. She was promptly thrown in prison. Apparently, Zuko had reported her. And evidently, someone had listened.

"Why is it that no matter how much I learn I always end up getting thrown in prison?" asked Azula.

"Maybe it's bad karma." suggested Ty Lee.

Azula smiled. "It doesn't matter. We've gotten what we came from. And even if we fail, I'll just go back to day one. I'll win sooner or later. And there is nothing Zuzu, or the Avatar, can do to stop us."


	6. Getting Bored

**Chapter Six: Getting Bored.**

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. She had a plan, and it was well underway. So why was she so reluctant to get out of bed?

She'd been working for days upon days upon days on this project. She didn't know exactly how long. Nothing she did could help her keep track of the time she spent here. Azula was bored and tired.

Even so, she stood up, stretched like usual, did her hair and walked out.

There was Ty Lee and Mai like always. Once again Ty Lee stood and opened her mouth. Azula reached out on reflex and shut it, before pouring herself some coffee. Quickly she sipped it.

Then she turned to them. "Well, we've gotten the general outline of the wind currents in the city ready." said Azula at last. "I think we're about ready to begin phase 2 of my plan." She glanced at Mai, who was eyeing her strangle. Like she always did. Mai opened her mouth. "I don't mean the coup. If we start just one blaze, it'll get isolated and put out. But if we start several simultaneously-"

"Azula, what are you talking about?" asked Mai. As usual, Mai had no idea what was going on. Neither did Ty Lee, but Ty Lee didn't care.

"Our plan to burn down Ba Sing Se." said Azula. "I've been reliving the same day over and over again, and I've decided the best solution is to lay waste to the entire city." She had explained this perhaps twenty million times already. But, as always, she had to do it again.

"I thought we wanted to take it over." said Ty Lee.

"Enough of that, Ty Lee." said Azula. She tried to control her irritation. "Where am I going to get access to that kind of manpower?"

"Shouldn't we be working with the Dai Li." asked Mai.

Azula blinked. "The Dai Li? Now there is an idea. An organization like theirs probably operates on a need to know basis. I think we can exploit this.

"We'll also need to clear away any potential threats.

"Perhaps we could use the coup to our advantage? We don't need all the Dai Li to take down the generals. But then, we don't need to take down all the generals."

"What do you mean?" asked Mai.

"If the Dai Li's plan doesn't take out all the generals there will be a civil war." said Azula. "If there is a civil war then the command of Ba Sing Se will fall into chaos. And if there is chaos, there will be no one to organize the fire fighters. Will there?" She was thinking through this on the fly.

"Won't a lot of people get killed in the blaze though?" asked Ty Lee.

Azula shrugged. "That's a sacrifice I'm willing to make.

"Still, we'll need to know the layout of the city." Neither one of them would defy her. Neither of them would dare. When Azula finally initiated her plan, neither one of them would have the chance to stop it.

"You really should try to be nicer, dear." said Mother.

"SHUT UP, MOTHER!" snarled Azula.

"Is your mother here?" asked Ty Lee.

"Yes!" said Azula. "And she keeps harassing me! I'm tired of her telling me what to do!"

"I only have your best interests at heart." said Mother in a fake kind voice. It sounded real, but it was fake.

"Azula," said Mai, "I think you've lost it."

"No, no, this is her plan!" said Azula. "She wants to embarrass me in front of you! Say something, say something!"

"...Can we maybe get back to the plan?" asked Ty Lee in a small voice.

"Yes, fine." said Azula. "If only to shut Mother up."

When they left the room, Azula shut and locked the door. That way Mother couldn't follow her.

* * *

Later they kneeled before the Earth King. He listened to them keenly, his hand clasped on his knees. The bear sat at his feet, eyeing them, and as Azula made he request she remembered firing a lightning bolt that killed them both. She didn't feel any satisfaction at the memory.

Why did it matter if she could kill them so easily? It would just loop back again.

The Earth King paused as she finished. "You want information on firefighting crews? That's unusual."

She needed an explanation. Fortunately, she had prepared one well in advance. Based on real-life events. "Well, my home of Kyoshi was burned down by Prince Zuko." said Azula. "I'd hate to see that happen-" She trailed off as the bear lumbered down the steps toward her.

The bear brushed against her. The forced of it nearly knocked Azula to the ground. She struggled to push him off, only to be licked across the face. The sensation of its tongue on her made her shudder. It was disgusting.

"Oh don't worry about Bosco. He's perfectly friendly." said the Earth King. "That means he likes you." Liked her, did it? There was something odd about this bear. What kind of bear was just... a bear.

"That's wonderful." said Azula, resisting the urge to blow the thing away. "In any case, I'd like to see the records in the firefighting groups. I might be able to arrange things, so they work a bit better." That was a sub par lie if she'd ever made one. The bear had taken her off guard.

Maybe she should kill the Earth King again and start over. No, she might have to watch Ty Lee die if she did that. Suicide it was then.

"That doesn't sound unreasonable." said the Earth King. "I'll show you to the record hall myself."

Or maybe the Earth King was as gullible as he was stupid. How had this man lasted this long, again?

The record hall was absolutely enormous. The shelves stretched high into the air so that one needed a huge ladder to reach the top. Crystals sat on the ceiling, illuminating the room from below. The floor was wood paneled.

Despite herself, Azula was impressed. As she walked behind the Earth King, she wondered how to admit the fact. "This is... very extensive."

"Yes. My father went out of his way to set in place extensive records. He wanted to be able to intervene in everything." said the Earth King. "The Dai Li's original role was learning about how things worked throughout Ba Sing Se. Eventually, they were expanded to maintaining order. I never dreamed Long Feng would have taken such a large amount of control for himself."

"What did you expect?" asked Azula. "Those who have the opportunity to seize power, take it."

"Well, truth be told my parents died when I was very young." admitted the Earth King. "I was raised by servants, and Long Feng decided who saw me. I didn't even know there was a war on until a few days ago." He looked at her oddly. "What was it like for you?"

"Me?" asked Azula, surprised.

"Yes." said the Earth King. "What were your parents like?"

Azula looked away. She didn't feel like answering. Especially not to some earth savage. But to maintain the masquerade she had to say something. Finally, she sighed and settled on the truth. "My Mother thought I was a monster. And my father always expected the world of me."

"That sounds hard." said the Earth King. "How did you cope?"

"Mostly by bullying my older brother." said Azula. "He was never nearly as talented as I was." She couldn't keep the pride out of her voice.

"You should be nice to your brother." said Mother. How had she gotten out of the room.

"Just ignore her, and she'll go away." said Azula.

"Ah." said the Earth King. He paused as they came to a series of records. He read the title, then nodded. "Well, here we are. These are all the records on firefighting methods in Ba Sing Se. I'd better get back to the throne. Ever since Long Feng was imprisoned, I've had much more to do."

He turned and walked away. "Thank you Mr. Earth King." called Ty Lee.

"It's no trouble." said the Earth King. Then he left.

What was his name again? Azula decided it was irrelevant. "Now, we'd better get to work."

They began to read through the various documents. As they did, Azula realized that Ty Lee and Mai were of no use in this situation. Even if they memorized the data, they wouldn't remember it tomorrow. This... loop, was presenting some interesting challenges.

But that challenge only encouraged her. Azula wouldn't have chased the Avatar here if anyone could have done it. The fact that Zhao and Zuko had failed had made her want to exceed them. To prove once and for all that she was greater than them.

And when she seized Ba Sing Se she had proved herself greater than Iroh, and Sozin, and Ozai. She was fourteen now. When she became Firelord, as she was certain she would, she would be greater still. She would be the greatest Firelord in history. Azula would make an empire of the world.

No one would dare oppose her.

"Excuse me." said the water peasant. "I'm looking for the Earth King, and I was told he was..." She paused. "You aren't the Kyoshi Warriors."

Azula sighed. "Ty Lee, take care of this."

As soon as she said that the water peasants eyes widened. She took a stance and began to summon her water. "Azula!" Before she could move, however, Ty Lee leaped over her. Reaching down with one hand, Ty Lee caught her on the shoulder. The water peasants body went limp, the water spattered over the floor as she hit the ground.

Azula drew out the rope she'd brought with her. She'd taken to keeping it on her lately, what with the water peasant constantly interfering. Kneeling by the peasant, she dragged her arms behind her back and tied them together. Then drawing up her legs she tied them to her arms in a painfully tight bind. So tight that the girl's chest was forced off the ground, so she had to support herself on her stomach.

"You did that very quickly, didn't you?" asked Mai.

"This has got to be the hundredth time she has interfered." said Azula, feeling dead. "I've had a lot of practice."

"You... you won't get away with this..." said the water peasant, voice low.

"Yes, yes, we've heard it all before." said Azula. Then curiousity struck her. Maybe it was because of how many times she'd been thrown in prison. Or maybe she was merely hungry for new information after focusing so much on records. "What is your name?"

"Why should I tell you anything?" asked the water peasant.

"Well, I could cut your throat here and now." suggested Azula.

She paled. So the water peasant feared death, did she? "My... my name is Katara."

"Fascinating, water peasant." said Azula. "Where were you born?"

"Why should you care?" asked Katara. "You're fire nation!"

"I'm hoping to exploit the information." said Azula. "And if you don't answer I'll cut your throat."

"I was born in the South Pole." said the girl.

"Hmm, and why did you follow the Avatar?" asked Azula.

"Because I believe Aang can save the world." said the water peasant, voice furious. "He won't let you get away with this! You're a horrible person; you know that? Chasing the Avatar-MMPH!"

Azula put a rope between her lips and gagged her. Her frustrated screams were quite satisfying. Looking up, she glanced to Mai and Ty Lee. "Ty Lee, is there a closet we can store her in?"

"I'll go look." said Ty Lee.

"Knock her out first." said Azula.

Ty Lee obeyed, and the water peasant fell unconscious.

Azula spent several more loops memorizing everything she could about the schedules of the fire crews. The locations of the major wells, and all the methods used to prevent infernos. She figured out who among the Dai Li were ideal for her purposes and developed a rough plan.

And then, having become bored, she decided to take a loop off. It wasn't as if she didn't have time. She had all the time in the world. All the time in the world.

It was time to pay the water peasant a different kind of retribution.

* * *

** Author's Note:**

And here we are with chapter five.

From the looks of things, Azula is starting to get emotionally invested in Ba Sing Se. In the same way, she is emotionally invested in Zuko, who is the closest thing she has to a positive relationship. So yeah, weep for Ba Sing Se. Weep.

Enjoy.


	7. A Dark Turn

_**Warning:**_

_**This chapter contains torture, violence, and disturbing material uncharacteristic of this fic. While it does play a role in the plot, future chapters will summarize the events of this one. If you are easily disturbed or have triggers of any kind, do not read on.**_

_**Seriously, this is not going to be pleasant material.**_

* * *

**Chapter Seven: A Dark Turn**

Katara got out of bed and quickly dressed. Ever since Aang and the others had gone off on one thing or another, everything had fallen to her. She was, sort of, the representative of the Avatar. That was why she had to go to a war meeting.

As she dressed, she heard a knock at her door. With a sigh, she looked up. "Who's there?"

"I'm sorry to disturb you, ma'am." said a voice. "I'm here with your outfit for the war meeting."

Outfit? Was there some kind of special outfit you needed to go to war meetings? It wouldn't have been the weirdest thing Katara had seen in Ba Sing Se. Quickly putting on her clothes, she made for the door. "One moment."

She opened it and saw a Kyoshi Warrior on the other side. Then she saw who the Kyoshi warrior was. She opened her mouth, but before she could move Azula sprang. The Princess slammed her down and forced a rag over her mouth.

Katara struggled to get free, even as her vision began to face. She tried to bend her waterskin, but it was empty. The last thing she saw before her vision went black was Azula smirking.

* * *

Katara woke up. She was cold, very cold, and she couldn't see anything. She was lying on something, something metal, and her hands and feet were bound in a spread eagle position. Whatever it was she was lying on was incredibly cold, the hairs on her neck were standing on end. She struggled, but they held her tight.

Her mouth was so dry. Then she felt someone grab her blindfold and pull it off. Azula was sitting next to her. "Hello, water peasant."

Azula. "What... where am I?"

"Somewhere where no one will find you. Not today anyway." said Azula, leaning back in her chair and crossing her legs.

"Let me go!" snarled Katara.

"Has anyone ever actually let you go when you said that?" asked Azula. "I doubt even Zuzu is that naive."

"When I get out of here..." said Katara.

Azula shrugged. "You won't. I've already seen to that. This isn't the first time I set this up, after all. Just the first time I did any questioning." She cupped her chin thoughtfully. "Now, last time, I got around to some basic information. You grew up in the South Pole. Your name is Katara. I know you're a water bender.

"This time, I think we'll try for better information.

"So, tell me something I don't know."

Katara glared at her. "Why should I-"

And then Azula fired a lightning bolt. It hit Katara in the stomach and agony coursed through her. She screamed as she strained, her body spasming.

"Oh, and if you don't tell me something I don't know about you, I'm going to torture you." said Azula. "Ordinarily I wouldn't use such inefficient methods, but, all work and no play you know."

Katara recovered. This was... this was horrible. Zuko never did anything like this. But everyone had to be looking for her now. She had to stay strong for Aang and the others. She pulled herself as high up as possible.

"I won't-" she began.

Azula shot her again, this time in the leg. Katara screamed as loud as she could. Maybe someone would find her if she made enough noise. "Help! Someone, please help-" Her voice was broken off as Azula shot more lightning.

"You know, I enjoy your screams." said Azula, leaning in so their faces were inches apart. "Maybe I'll enjoy them more if I work at you a bit more."

Before Katara could respond, Azula put a hand to her stomach. The pain coursed through her. Her vision went blurry as she thrashed. Katara tried to speak; she had to make this stop!

No, no she couldn't betray Aang. But... but Azula hadn't even asked her anything.

"You know," said Azula, "I learned this variety of lightning especially for you. You should be more appreciative. All those times you interfered with my schemes, it motivated me to do something special for you.

"Lightning is the most lethal of all fire techniques. It takes immense focus and clarity of mind to use it to kill someone. But to fire it at a low enough voltage to merely torture instead of kill?

"That takes a very special kind of skill. Would you like me to demonstrate it again?"

"What..." gasped Katara, sweat dripping from her brow. "What do you want?"

"Do I need to repeat myself?" asked Azula. "I suppose peasants of all cultures have never been quick on the uptake."

A flash and more pain. Katara screamed herself hoarse.

"Tell me something I don't know." said Azula.

She had to stop this. "My Mother's name was Kya!" cried Katara, feeling tears in her eyes.

"Really?" asked Azula.

Then the lightning came again. Katara felt her skin burning. She sobbed. "Why did... why did you..."

"You stopped." said Azula. "I'd really love to hear more."

"My Gran Gran was from the north pole!" screamed Katara. "She was originally betrothed to Master Pakku!" Then came the agony again. "I was... I was telling you what you wanted..."

Azula put a hand across her mouth. Her eyes were peering at her, and Katara realized just how insane this person was. She wished she was back with Zuko he... he'd never done anything like this, and he'd needed information.

Azula didn't want anything.

And now Katara was having trouble breathing. She struggled.

"Shh. Context, Katara. I wanted context." said Azula. "Who is Pakku?"

Katara brought everything she knew about Pakku to mind. "He... he's a waterbending master. He taught me waterbending." Azula raised a hand. "PLEASE DON'T!"

Another flash and more agony. Azula was torturing her for fun. She didn't care about any of this. But as long as Katara was talking, she wouldn't be hurting her.

"When?" asked Azula.

"When I went there with Aang!" said Katara. "Please... stop!"

"Hmm, no." said Azula.

More pain as yet more lightning shot into her.

"Now," said Azula "why don't we start with another story."

Katara said nothing. Azula was going to torture her again no matter what she did. If she stayed quiet, she'd at least keep some of her dignity.

"You know," said Azula, "I've practiced on you before now. I didn't ask you any questions then. Didn't even take off your blindfold. I even killed you several times.

"I know exactly what your limits are. If you talk, I can promise you there will be pauses between what I'm doing to you. If you keep up this pointless defiance, well..." She raised her hand. "Let's find out."

And the lightning hit her. Katara remained silent as best she could. She tried to stop from screaming. Tried to keep control. Azula would run out of energy, or she would have to stop before Katara died.

But it didn't stop.

Instead, Azula lowered the intensity of the lightning so that it was just a dull pain. Then she'd increase it again, then lowered it. It happened at random. Soon Katara couldn't control herself anymore. She screamed and screamed, and Azula's smile widened.

She couldn't take this anymore. She had to stop this. "I'll, I'll talk..."

Azula halted the lightning. "Go on."

Katara searched through her mind for anything to say to satiate her. "My Mother died when I was very young. The Fire Nation, it raided our village and Sokka and the men were out fighting. But I ran to find Mom, and there was a man there and-" And then she howled as Azula shocked her again.

"Could your story be more boring?" asked Azula with an exaggerated yawn. "You really should try to keep me interested, Katara. It could be very bad if you bore me."

"I'm begging you! Please! Don't..." gasped Katara. "let me think of something! I won't be able to think of anything if you keep..." A sob came from her lips and she broke down. All of a sudden Katara couldn't speak at all, she just sobbed. Tears fell from her eyes, her entire body in agony. She had minor burns all over her. "I'll tell you anything you want to know, please, just don't... don't hurt me anymore..."

Azula leaned in. "Hmm, you've told me a great deal. But I'm not sure I've heard anything I can use. Keep talking."

Katara forced herself to think. "I... My brother and I were raised by my dad, Hakoda! He taught Sokka and I all kinds of thing and then-" Azula raised a hand. "Aah! I didn't! I didn't stop talking! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to bore you!"

Azula lowered it, and Katara breathed in relief. "I know. I'm just keeping busy."

"The men of the Southern Water tribe left!" said Katara. "They left to fight in the war! Sokka and I were left to care for our tribe!"

"You, you're two children?" said Azula.

"Yes... I..." Katara couldn't think. "so are you." It just came out, it was the first thing that came to mind.

Azula brought up one leg and slammed it down onto Katara's stomach. She spat out blood from the strike. Azula drew up the leg and set it onto Katara's throat. "Because you're an uneducated peasant I'll let that one slide."

She drew the leg back.

"Then why..." gasped Katara.

"Force of habit. And don't interrupt me." said Azula. "I may be the same age as you. But what you lack is the divine right of kings. I am a Princess of the Fire Nation. What title do you have that compares?"

Katara kept silent. She didn't want to be hurt again. And then Azula shocked her again, and she realized she was supposed to answer.

"Well?" asked Azula.

"I... my Father is the Chief of my Tribe!" said Katara.

There was another shock.

"And you think that makes you my equal." laughed Azula. "You pitiful thing. I almost feel sorry for you.

"Almost."

And then she fired lightning again. And she didn't stop. Katara didn't want to die. Not like this. Not here! She had to say something, anything, to make it stop!

"Please... please stop. I... I'll answer any questions you have just... just stop hurting me please..." said Katara.

"I'm sure you will." said Azula. "The thing is, I'm mostly here for my own entertainment. That and settling a grudge against you. So unless you can find anything really helpful to tell me, I think I'll just stick with the lightning."

Katara stared at her. Until today she'd just thought of Azula as another enemy. A very dangerous one. But... but why would Azula hate her this much. "What did... what did I do to you?" She had to know. What could have...

"A great many things." said Azula. "Most of them today." She shocked her again, and then she just kept on doing it. "Now, it's been fun. But I'm beginning to get tired of your screams. So I think I'll just increase the intensity of my lightning, little by little until you die." She was already doing it. "Do you have any last words."

Katara didn't want to die! She couldn't die! She had to stay alive, so she could help the others! "I... I can tell you about Aang!"

Azula halted her lightning. "Aang? Who is that?"

"The Avatar!" cried Katara. "I can tell you about him. I know all his fighting techniques, all his weaknesses. Just... just please don't... please stop..."

Azula halted. "Hmm, alright then. You have my attention. Tell me about Aang?"

"He... he isn't very good at earthbending." said Katara. "It is the opposite of his normal style. Aang likes to keep moving, with his airbending. Earthbending requires staying steady."

"Mmmhmm, so that is his weak point. What about water?" asked Azula.

She was betraying Aang. The Avatar. Like that old man who betrayed Haru. No, no, Azula would kill her if she didn't. Aang would understand, wouldn't he? "Water... water... he's good at water. Very good. Not as good as me I... Pakku called me a master."

"Well I suppose one can be a master of anything." mused Azula. "It doesn't make it an accomplishment. So tell me, where do you think the Avatar stands in comparison to yourself?"

"I... I'm not really sure." admitted Katara. "I've mastered all of the basics, and I... I know the advanced forms. Aang is pretty good at all the basics and he's working on the advanced but..."

"But what?" asked Azula.

"He has to focus on earth as well, so he doesn't have as much time for practice as me." said Katara. "I... I've also been practicing constantly since I was little."

"Hmm, and his earth teacher." said Azula. "Who is she?"

"She is... her name is Toph Beifong." said Katara. "She's blind, but she can see by feeling the vibrations in the earth. She... she'll find you!"

"Maybe." admitted Azula. "But she isn't due to arrive in Ba Sing Se for another few hours. I can reset the loop before she and your little friends arrive."

"What..." Katara didn't even know what she meant.

She talked to Katara like they had been enemies for years. Azula stood up and walked a ways away. Without speaking Azula pulled off her shirt and shed her robes to reveal only her underwear. "Now, I've gotten all the satisfaction I wanted out of your pain. I think I'll move on to the next part."

As Azula shed the rest of her clothes, Katara realized what she had planned. This... this couldn't be happening. Not like this... "Please... please I'm begging you, I haven't... I've never..."

Azula grabbed Katara's shirt and ripped it from her. Pressing herself against her like a predator, Katara screamed as Azula ripped her clothes off roughly. Her hands ran over her injuries, pressing her fingers over them.

Then she stopped. Katara looked into Azula's eyes, hoping to see something. Something other than sadistic joy. But there was nothing.

Nothing at all.

"They..." Katara tried to stay strong. "They won't let you get away with this."

"Don't worry." said Azula. "Once I've had my way with you, today will end and you won't remember anything. Which means I'll be able to do it over again to you whenever I want.."

A few hours later, Azula walked out of the cell she'd had fashioned. The Dai Li Agent who had created it was dead now, no one would know where even to begin to start looking for Katara. Not that it mattered.

Azula left her sobbing in her cell, having taken just about everything. And her friends would not find her before the day was over. Looking up at the starts, the Princess of the Fire Nation stretched and smiled. "Well, that was fun. Time to get back to work."

_"It makes me sad when you torture innocent people, Azula."_

"Shut up, Mother."

* * *

**Author's Note:**

Well, this took a dark turn quickly. Thus the title and warning.

Azula is a depraved individual, unfortunately. Coldblooded torture is not beneath her. Neither is rape. So it was inevitable that she would resort to both.

I considered skipping this chapter. But the point of a Groundhog Day Loop is to track the characters development. In this case, Azula begins as a more evil person than usual in these fics. So I have to show how far she is willing to sink.

I could have just said that Azula did this to Katara in the text. Or left it vague. But then the events would lack all punch.

For better or worse, this is who Azula is.


	8. Crisis of Faith

**Chapter Eight: Crisis of Faith**

Playtime was over. Now it was time to finish the job.

Azula stood with new confidence before her Dai Li. Her arms were crossed, and she looked at them with a new discipline. "The Earth King and the council of five do not trust the Dai Li. It is now only a matter of time before they hunt you down. Your only chance is to act now.

"We will act now." She walked down and neared one she knew to be a dissenter. She had spent a week's worth of loops rooting out all potential problems. She had given everyone just the right mission that they would not question it. Finding every problem and straightening it out. "And if I sense even the smallest fraction of dissent, I will hunt it down. And destroy it.

"Our actions today will ready the way for our victory. Go."

She turned away and they left. There would be no mistakes this time. Ty Lee approached. "Um, Azula, that was a really cool speech. It was inspiring, but also scary in a good way."

"What I want to know is why you've had them dispatched to the city." said Mai. "What are you trying to achieve?"

Azula smiled. "Nothing." She wanted to leave them in suspense.

"Nothing? What about the coup?" asked Mai.

Azula began to walk away. "There is no point. It will just be undone. But this... nothing will be able to stop it this time. I've already done this many times, Mai. I know which Dai Li agents will accept which tasks. I know the bare minimum necessary to remove the Earth King's generals.

"I know it all. And I've taken it into account.

"Now come on. The shows about to start."

"Show? What show?" asked Ty Lee.

Azula picked a terrace in the Earth King's palace. It overlooked the entire city so that one could see all the way to the inner wall. "This is the best place is the entire city to watch it from. I've accounted for everything. Every location. Every reassignment. Every... spark..."

And then flames arose in various parts of the city. Small at first, but they spread quickly. She had planned it well.

"A fire." said Mai.

"One of many." said Azula, smile widening. Then she laughed. "Yes! Yes they are coming! Burn! BURN!"

"Azula, what did you do?" asked Ty Lee.

"Set fire to Ba Sing Se." said Azula, glancing back. Why were they getting so worked up about this?

The flames were spreading wholesale now, consuming everything. Screams echoed from the city. Some of them were from children. Azula shifted beneath their gaze. "Several dozen times." How many was hard to count. She couldn't record it.

"But why? Why are you doing this?" asked Ty Lee.

"Because I can't get out of the city. But soon, there will not be a city!" laughed Azula. "Then, at last, it will end!"

"Azula!" cried a voice.

Azula sidestepped a wave of water. Raising a hand without looking, she fired a lightning bolt. She heard a scream as she blasted the water peasant through the heart. This was the fifth time she'd done this part, she'd memorized the exact movements her enemy would make. "Oh right, the water peasant."

"Azula, what about all the people?" asked Ty Lee.

"What do they matter?!" asked Azula. "The flames will rise! Higher and higher!"

And then, as the light faded, there was that familiar flash. Azula looked up to see a sphere of wind. And within it was a figure with shining blue eyes.

"Is that... the Avatar." asked Mai.

"Don't worry, Mai. I've already accounted for him." said Azula. Even as the Avatar began to summon water, he choked and fell to earth. "That Avatar state is quite a nuisance. But even it has its limits."

"What limits, what are you talking about?" asked Mai.

"I knew that he'd make an entrance in that exact spot." said Azula. "So I had the Dai Li set off fires that burned a powerful form of poisonous gas. Even as he entered the Avatar state, he inhaled the gas. Now he is dying.

"Forever.

"Of course, last time Zuzu and Iroh interfered. Last time their skill with fire let them put it out. Fortunately, I arranged for them to be safely imprisoned."

"Azula, this is crazy!" cried Ty Lee. "We can't... this will kill everyone!"

"Possibly. But it doesn't matter." said Azula. "Nothing matters!" She turned to look in joy as the inferno blazed without relent. **"BA SING SE IS ASHES! THE WALL IS CRUMBLING! ALL WHO WOULD DARE OPPOSE BE ARE CONSUMED IN THE ETERNAL FLAME OF MY WRATH!"**

"Come on Mai, we've got to see if we can help someone." said Ty Lee.

And then left.

Azula sighed and leaned against the railing. They had left her. They'd gone to school with her, and now they left her. It didn't matter though. Ba Sing Se was burning, and soon there would be nothing left.

Even so, as she watched the inferno continued, she reflected the fun had gone out of it. And she realized that whenever she got this extreme, Mai and Ty Lee lost their nerve. "...Spoilsports."

At least the day was finally over.

* * *

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. Ba Sing Se was still here. She was still here.

"So it didn't end, did it?" asked Azula. "No matter. I'll... I'll..." She'd conquered Ba Sing Se. She'd destroyed it. She'd tortured her hated enemies to death. "I'm staying in bed."

She lay there, staring up at the ceiling. Eventually, Ty Lee opened the door and slipped it. She shook her. "Hey, Azula. Azula, wake up sleepyhead. You've got to try these sausages. They're the best."

"I don't care." said Azula.

'What?" said Ty Lee. "What do you mean? Azula, is something wrong?"

Azula turned over in her bed. "Go away. The coup is canceled."

Ty Lee left. Azula lay in bed until darkness took her.

* * *

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face.

"Not again." she said.

She was still in Ba Sing Se. And there was nothing she could do about it.

"Hey, Azula. Azula, wake up sleepyhead." said Ty Lee, right on schedule. "You've got to try these sausages. They're the best."

Azula said nothing.

"Azula? Azula is something wrong?" asked Ty Lee.

"Leave me alone." said Azula.

She wanted to sleep. And never wake up.

* * *

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. This wasn't fair! She'd done everything she'd wanted to do! They couldn't do this! They couldn't treat her like Zuko!

"Hey, Azula. Azula, wake up sleepyhead. You've got to try these sausages." said Ty Lee. "They're the-"

"I don't want any!" cried Azula. "Now go away!"

Ty Lee left.

Azula wasn't leaving. She was just going to stay in bed. There was nothing worth doing out there anyway.

* * *

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face.

* * *

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face.

* * *

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face.

* * *

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face.

And she realized she couldn't do this anymore. She had to find something to do if only to fill the time. No matter how many times she stayed in bed she would always wake up here again.

Nothing was ever different.

"Hey, Azula. Azula wake up sleepyhead." said Ty Lee. "You've got to try these sausages. They're the best."

Azula sat up. "I know."

It didn't matter how many times she answered. Ty Lee would always say the same thing every morning. Azula wondered if she was going to get tired of her friends eventually? Would Mai and Ty Lee just become puppets on strings to her? Inanimate objects?

She realized that she did think of them as friends. They were... valuable to her. And she didn't want to lose them. Not yet.

"Azula, is something wrong?" asked Ty Lee.

"Nothing ever changes." said Azula. "Every day is exactly the same as the last day. No matter what I do I wake up here in this bed. On this day."

"Um, Azula, I'm not really very good at philosophy." said Ty Lee. "But you're aura is looking really bleak right now. Maybe you should talk to someone."

Azula needed to get out of here. She had to take a break from these two or they might just become marionettes to her. She dressed, did her hair, and walked out. "Mai, take care of the coup. I'm going to a tea shop."

"Don't you want us to-" began Ty Lee.

"I don't need you for this." said Azula, voice harsher than she'd meant.

And she left.

* * *

She didn't find the tea shop at once. She'd forgotten where it was. On reflex, she'd ended up wandering in the slums. It didn't matter. Even if she was killed by a thug, the dishonor would disappear.

Azula realized she'd never died by having her throat slit before. She wondered what it was like.

"Excuse me, could you spare a few coins?" said an old man.

The same old man she'd run into before all those loops before. Last time she'd pushed him down. Mocked him. So why was she checking for any coins on her?

She just didn't have the energy to sneer anymore.

"...I don't have anything on me." said Azula. "Go away."

It took a while to find Uncle's tea shop. She wasn't sure why she was coming here. She vaguely remembered that he'd always had pseudo-profound things to say. She'd never thought much of them. Father had always said he was a failure.

But nothing Father had taught her was helping. And she had no idea what to do.

She found it and walked in. At once she was greeted by Zuzu. He was smiling and wasn't that an unnatural expression. "Hello, welcome to the Jasmine Dragon, how can I-" He froze. "Azula?"

Azula slumped. "...Hello Lee. Can I speak to you for a moment? I'd hate to have to go to the guards about my problem." A threat was probably necessary here. But she wasn't feeling up to it.

Zuko moved over to uncle at once. "Uncle, this girl wishes to speak to me. Do you mind if I take my break early."

Uncle eyed her. Wait, why had she wanted to talk to Zuko? Well, he'd always liked Uncle. So maybe she could get Uncle's perspective without having to talk to the doddering old fool. "...Of course, nephew." said Uncle.

And that was how Zuko and Azula ended up sitting across from each other at a table in the Jasmine Dragon. Azula tried to regain her usual composure, but there was no point. Tomorrow it would all be washed away.

"So, you seem to enjoy working in a tea shop." said Azula. "I haven't seen you smile like that since Mother left."

It was apparently the wrong thing to say. Azula had never been good at talking to people. Only commanding. Zuko became guarded. "What do you want, Azula?"

"Well, I was going to talk to uncle. But even I'm not desperate enough to hear his speeches on life, the universe, and everything." said Azula, regaining some composure.

"Get to the point." said Zuko. "What do you want me to do?"

Azula felt irritation that he automatically assumed she wanted something. Granted, she had threatened him. A lot. And she hadn't ever actually had his best interests at heart, but she had planned to keep him around. If only to have someone to make her look good by comparison.

Father might have wanted him thrown in prison, but Father wasn't going to live forever. Azula meant to make sure of the fact. But what was it she wanted? "For now? Just listen."

"Fine." said Zuko. "I'm listening."

Azula shifted. How to explain things? "I am a god."

Zuko stared at her. "Do you seriously believe that propaganda-"

"No, I don't mean I'm a god in the sense that my family is Agni Incarnate." said Azula. "That's just propaganda. I mean that I. Am. A. God.

"I cannot be killed. No wound that rends my flesh will remain the next day. For the next day never comes. I've hung myself. I've electrocuted myself. I've been stabbed to death, crushed by earthbenders, and consumed in the flames of a burning city.

"And every day I wake up in the Earth King's palace and have Ty Lee urge me to eat the same damn breakfast.

"I am eternal." She spread her arms.

Zuko gave her a flat, unimpressed look. "You aren't a god, Azula. Trust me."

"How do you know, Zuko?" asked Azula.

"What?" said Zuko.

"How do you know I'm not a god?" asked Azula.

Zuko considered the question seriously. "Because you're a horrible person."

That... actually hurt.

"You used to burn turtleducks when we were kids." said Zuko. "You told me that Father was going to kill me." Azula hadn't lied about that, but he'd never believed her. "You've been lying to me my entire life. You surrendered and then when Uncle let down his guard you shot him with lightning.

"Gods are supposed to be wise. And nobody wise could ever be as petty, vindictive and sadistic as you."

And he got up to leave. That was where it ended for that loop. He walked over to speak with that same girl Azula had seen before.

Azula sighed and began to take notes.

* * *

"...Gods are supposed to be wise." Zuko said again. "And nobody wise could ever be as petty, vindictive and sadistic as you."

Azula stood up and rushed over to the girl from before. "...Jin!"

"What?" said Zuko.

Azula stepped next to the girl and put a hand on her shoulder. "This is Jin, her parents moved to Ba Sing Se when she was very young. Your Uncle offered her a job at the Jasmine Dragon and she moved to this district.

"She's lived here her entire life. You are currently dating her, and more than anything else she wants to see outside the walls of Ba Sing Se."

"Well, uh, yes that's true. But have we met-" began Jin.

Azula had done more research. She moved over to another person, one of a group of friends drinking together. "This is Kiya. She hates tea, but she doesn't want to say so to her friend."

"Well, yes but-" began the girl.

"And this is her friend Ora." said Azula. "She likes tea. But she also wanted to see the cute barista who lives here. She thinks the scar on your face adds a dark charm."

"Um, well that's true but..."

Azula walked toward Zuko, who still looked unimpressed. "You could have learned all that by listening to their conversations."

She had.

So she did some more research, more in depth.

She moved over to another patron. "This is Than. He's recently gotten work as a courier which allows him to go between districts. He has a wife named Ying, and an infant daughter named Hope. They moved here to Ba Sing Se and would never have made it without the help of the Avatar and his friends."

"Well, yes, that's all true." said the man.

"His favorite kind of tea is today's special." said Azula. "White dragon tea. Uncle made the decision to put the tea kind on a whim this morning. Can you remember any time I looked at your menu, Zuzu? Because I just got here five minutes ago."

"How are you doing this?" asked Zuko.

"I told you. I'm reliving the same day over and over again." said Azula. "I just asked the right questions yesterday, everything reset, and I came back.

"I know everything. And if I don't I will.

"In about five seconds that damn water peasant is going to show up and blow your cover. Five. Four. Three. Two. One."

On cue, Katara showed up, got a look at Zuko's face, gasped and ran off. She probably thought she had been subtle.

"There she goes again." said Azula.

"What did-" began Zuko.

"What does it matter? Can we please focus on me?" asked Azula.

"This isn't about you." hissed Zuko. "Uncle has worked hard to build this up from scratch. Now she's going to ruin everything."

"Lee is something wrong." asked Jin, coming up next to him.

"Oh nothing to worry about." said Azula. "You see Lee is actually Prince Zuko in exile, having fled to Ba Sing Se from the Fire Nation. That girl was one of his enemies, who is probably going to get the Dai Li. But it won't matter because nothing we do has even the slightest significance."

"Nephew, this is disturbing our customers." said Uncle. "I suggest you go back to your rounds. I will handle this."

"But what about-" began Zuko.

Uncle put a hand on his shoulder. "Peace nephew. This poor girl is confused. And as for that distressed young water tribesman, I'm sure she merely mistook you for someone else. We are but humble teamakers, after all."

Zuko hesitated. "...I understand."

Azula was pulled to one side. So she ended up having to talk to Uncle, after all. "What do you want, uncle?"

"I believe you are here because you are trying to answer that question for yourself." noted Uncle.

"I know exactly what I want." said Azula.

"Then why are you here?" asked Iroh.

Azula remained silent. "I won, uncle. I killed you. I killed the Avatar. I killed everyone who could oppose me. I burned this city to the ground. And then is... reset. No matter how many times I win, everything goes back to the way it was?

"...What do I do?"

Iroh remained silent. "I do not pretend to understand what it is that has driven you to this point, Azula. Perhaps what has happened to you is in your mind. Or perhaps the spirits have taken a hand in your destiny.

"However, it is obvious that you believe you have achieved what you wanted. Several times. And it has not satisfied you."

Azula shifted. "Well... no. But only because it was reset."

"Do you look back at the memory of those things you believe you did?" asked Iroh "When you remember those days, do you treasure them? Or is it merely one more inferno? You must look inward to truly understand the world."

They meant nothing to her.

All her victories meant nothing to her. They were a mere expression of power. And she had none. "...Be quiet."

"I do not think what you have been doing has brought you, peace, Azula." said Iroh.

"So what am I supposed to do?" asked Azula.

Iroh considered it. "Have you considered attempting to help others?"

Her help others? Others were supposed to help her! "No. And I'm not going to."

Iroh shifted. "...Yes, I suppose that is asking much. Perhaps you should get a hobby instead."

"A hobby?" asked Azula.

"When ordinary people find themselves with a great deal of time, they learn a skill they don't need." said Iroh. "Perhaps painting, or writing, or tea making. It takes a great deal of time and can lead to far more satisfaction than a hundred victories.

"Consider it.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a tea shop to run."

Azula left without a word after that.

* * *

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. She was still here. Still in Ba Sing Se. But she had plenty of time to find a solution.

And now she had a rare opportunity. Azula had an infinite amount of time to learn new skills. And she was going to make use of it.

She got out of bed and left the room. "Good morning." she said to Ty Lee and Mai.

"Oh Azula, um, you don't usually say good morning." said Ty Lee.

"I thought I might try a change of pace." said Azula, walking to the window.

She looked out of it, across the palace grounds. And smiled.

"Is something wrong?" asked Ty Lee.

"No, nothing is wrong." said Azula. "I've got all the time in the world to figure this out."

"So um, what's the plan?" asked Mai.

"I was just remembering my lessons back in the palace." said Azula. "Father always had me practice my firebending. I remember Zuzu was always very good at playing instruments. I never learned them though, I thought they were stupid.

"I think I'm going to beat him at his own game."

* * *

**Author's Note:**

Sorry, I didn't mean to take so long to post this. I had some trouble figuring out how to do this chapter. Having Azula have any kind of moral revelation is difficult. The only credible way I could do it was a partial thing.

To be honest, I'm somewhat conflicted about Zuko ripping Azula to shreds here. After all, Zuko always demonstrated a desire to reconcile with Azula, even in season two. Still, I decided that the fact that Azula is much less threatening, combined with the fact that there is no fear of reprisal, would create a circumstance where Zuko would be willing to tell her off.


	9. Self-Improvement

**Chapter Nine: Self-Improvement**

It was a nice house in one of the nicer districts. It had two stories, and the sound of music could be heard within. Azula knocked on the door and waited for what seemed the hundredth time. She wasn't sure how many days in a row she had taken lessons.

The door opened, and a dark-haired woman looked through.

"Excuse me, are you Ms. Isaribi?" asked Azula. "One of the greatest musicians in Ba Sing Se?"

"Yes." said the woman.

"I'd like you to take me as an apprentice." said Azula.

"I'm currently with someone-" began the woman. Azula raised a bag filled with gold. The woman looked through it. "-a spot just opened up, didn't it?"

She took the gold, closed the door and walked in. Ty Lee shifted nervously. "Azula are you sure you want to spend all our money on one lesson?"

"Don't worry." said Azula. "There isn't going to be a tomorrow." Then she drew out some coins and tossed them to Ty Lee. "Besides, I saved some. Why don't you get us some pastries and we'll be here when you get back."

"Right." said Ty Lee, nodding.

At that point, a young child was sent packing out the door. Isaribi nodded. "I'm ready for you now."

A few minutes later, Azula was playing the horn with practiced ease. She'd tried this many times, and now she was doing far better. The teacher was looking at her in something akin to awe.

Azula finished the lesson.

"...And you're sure you've never played the Tsurugi Horn before?" asked the teacher.

"No." said Azula proudly. "Ask Ty Lee and Mai."

"Well she tried when we were kids, but she gave up after her brother beat it at it." said Mai.

"He did not beat me!" said Azula.

"Well he was playing better than you." said Mai.

"I would have crushed him eventually if I kept at it." said Azula.

"But you didn't." said Mai.

"...Well anyway, thank you for your lessons." said Azula.

Azula found that thanking people was an excellent means of getting people to do what you wanted. She'd gotten into the habit of being nicer. It helped when she couldn't fall back on her bloodline to get people to cooperate.

* * *

The next morning Azula walked out of the room, dressed and ready for the next day. Ty Lee opened her mouth. Azula quickly put a finger to it. "Hey Ty Lee, no I don't want any sausages, I was wondering if you could help me with something."

She removed her hand.

"What is it, Azula?" asked Ty Lee.

"Could you help me with practicing my acrobatics?" asked Azula. "I'm pretty good, but I'm hoping to get better. Particularly as flexibility."

"Um, okay. But what about the coup?" asked Ty Lee.

"Good point." said Azula, removing the note and handing it to Mai. "Mai, take this letter to the Emperor. That will take care of things."

"Alright." said Mai.

And just like that, the coup was derailed. Again.

Later as Azula practiced her stretches with Ty Lee. In the process, she got a newfound appreciation for just how hard Ty Lee had to work. The cheery girl could do poses that Azula couldn't in her wildest dreams.

They practiced until the sun was setting. Finally, Ty Lee hated. "Well, this was fun Azula. You really have been working at your acrobatics.

"Still, we should probably stop for today."

Azula stood, feeling the strain on her body. "Why?"

"Well these movements kind of take a lot." said Ty Lee. "You've got to build up to them. Let's pick up tomorrow."

Azula sighed. "There isn't a tomorrow."

"What do you mean?" asked Ty Lee.

"Nevermind." said Azula. She'd had to insist twice for them to keep going. Last time she'd quit early. It wasn't getting any easier.

"What's wrong Azula?" asked Ty Lee.

"Well I tried this yesterday." said Azula. "But I guess my physical abilities don't carry on through the loops.

"Thanks anyway, Ty Lee."

"Um, okay." said Ty Lee. "Azula, are you feeling okay?"

"Of course." said Azula. "Why would you think otherwise?"

"Well it's just you've been really, really nice today." said Ty Lee. "You don't usually thank us or anything."

Nice? This couldn't be. A Fire Nation Princess was to be feared. Obeyed and known as beautiful and terrible. Not... nice. "I've decided to try and improve myself."

"Well I think it's a really good change." said Ty Lee. "But um, maybe we should do it after we conquer Ba Sing Se."

"Been there, done that." said Azula with a sigh. She turned to walk off.

"So where are you going now?" asked Ty Lee.

"To learn a new life skill. I'm not really sure-" began Azula.

And then a bunch of Earth Kingdom soldiers appeared before them. Earth hands grabbed them by the arms. "You're under arrest in the name of the Earth King, Princess Azula."

Azula smiled. Time to get back into practice on one of her existing skills. "-good news Ty Lee. I know which life skill I'm going to learn next."

The man was perfectly ordinary. He was not wearing a uniform, merely black, flowing garments. He had glasses and was reading.

"Excuse me, you're the head torturer of the Dai Li aren't you?" asked Azula, who had made all the arrangements for the coup ahead of time.

"Yes that is me." said the man, glancing up and eyeing her. "Though the term is 'Head of Interrogation.' There is a difference."

Azula let it pass and put on her nicest expression. "I was hoping you could help me out. You see, I've always had an... amateur interest in torture, and I was hoping you could give me some lessons."

"I think our priority should be on the coup." said the man.

"Trust me." said Azula. "I've accounted for every variable.

"I even have a prisoner lined up for us to work on." That water peasant would be broken. Again. Not that it would matter.

The man put down his report and leaned back in his chair. "Well, first I'd like to know exactly what kind of experience you have on the subject."

"Well I'm fairly knowledgeable about inflicting pain-" began Azula.

The man raised a hand. "Please. Interrogation isn't about pain. It's about psychology. We Dai Li don't hurt our prisoners. We don't break them.

"We reshape them."

Azula imagined forcing that water peasant into doing whatever she wanted. Maybe she could chain her to a throne. Have her dance for her while all her enemies were killed in front of her. "I like where this is going."

"Now why don't we begin the lessons."

Practice, as they said, made perfect. The Dai Li methods had nothing to do with pain. It was about pulling the right levers in the person's head. Azula had always been good at pulling levers, and with a few more loops she was even better.

The Head of Interrogation looked on impressed as she completely broke another subject. "...And you're sure you've never tried this before?"

"Not before today." said Azula. "Though I dabbled before."

"You are a natural." said the Head of Interrogation. "I've never seen anyone pick up the skills this quickly. You could have a long career ahead of you.

"Especially since you did all this by engineering the downfall of Ba Sing Se." Oh right, that happened in the background. "Out of curiosity, what do you intend to do with it?"

"Oh I'm leaving that for another day." said Azula with a smile. "I've decided I'm going to attend to some personal matters on the next day."

"What kind of personal matters?" asked the Head of Interrogation.

"Revenge." said Azula. "With a bit of fun. It's important to enjoy what you do." That was what she told herself anyway.

* * *

Except, as Azula awoke the next day, she realized she didn't really hate the water peasant anymore. She would probably enjoy torturing her, of course, and maybe something more. But she didn't feel any personal hatred.

Why not? What had changed? She'd ended up in prison who knows how many times because of her. It was only fair to hurt her. Except it was nothing more than an inconvenience to Azula. She'd just wake up the next day, no harm done.

Why did she care about this?

"Hey, Azula. Azula, wake up sleepyhead." said Ty Lee, right on schedule. "You've got to try these sausages. They're the best."

"Why don't I want to get up?" asked Azula. What had changed?

"Huh? What do you mean?" asked Ty Lee.

"I never used to have a problem with this." said Azula. "I like hurting her. That water peasant deserves it for interfering with me."

"Um, Azula, I'm not sure I understand." said Ty Lee.

"I should leap at the chance to break her again." said Azula. "The method would be different. The experience would be different.

"So why don't I want to?"

"Um, are you talking about torturing someone?" asked Ty Lee.

"Yes. Obviously." said Azula as she sat up. "I like hurting people who inconvenience me. But... there wouldn't be any victory in it."

"Azula, you're scaring me." said Ty Lee.

"No, no I am not going to tolerate this." said Azula. "Uncle will not rub off on me. I am Princess Azula of the Fire Nation! I will make my enemies suffer!"

And she stalked off to make her preparations. Soon they were made, and she tracked down the water peasant. Unaware as always.

Azula caught her unawares as she had many times before.

Except when she got the water peasant to that isolated cell, Azula did not bother to blindfold her. She bound her and set up the devices. With the light, she could break her in ever more creative ways.

But she didn't want to.

Why not? It was a different method. She had no idea how she would react. It couldn't be that Azula had gotten attached to her? Even if she had, it didn't matter. She could torture her as much as she wanted and there would be no consequences.

The water peasant woke up. Azula said nothing.

"What... where am I?" asked the water peasant.

Then again the same could be said for Ty Lee and Mai. Azula could have tortured them instead of the water peasant. And it wouldn't have mattered.

That too would have been a new experience.

"You, Azula, let me go!" said the water peasant.

Did she honestly think that would work? Azula knew she wasn't bright, but she hadn't thought it went that far. Then again maybe she was just self-centered.

"You, I don't know how you got into Ba Sing Se, but you won't get away with this!" said the girl, struggling. "Aang, Sokka and Toph will find me!"

Azula could have tortured her as much as she liked. A few loops ago she would have shocked her with lightning, but she'd done that already. Looking at the light, she knew she could try something new. Torturing the water peasant wasn't about getting answers; it was entertainment.

"...Stop staring at me like that." said the girl. "You're a horrible person you know that! Chasing the Avatar across the world! Sacrificing your friend's brother just for an advantage!"

Except Azula didn't want to torture people anymore. Why not?! What had changed? Somehow this was Uncle's fault!

The girl had changed from anger to confusion. "What do you want?"

Uncle had done something. He'd said a bunch of things, the nonsense he always did. Said that what she had been doing hadn't satisfied her. But she'd always listened to Father instead.

And now it just wasn't doing it for her anymore.

"SAY SOMETHING!" screamed Katara.

Azula stood up. She could try to convince herself this was fun, keep doing it over and over again. But she'd be lying to herself. She could say it was revenge, but being sent to prison didn't matter to her anymore.

But it obviously mattered a lot to this girl. That was something.

"...Not today."

Azula walked out and shut the door behind her. Katara could spend the rest of the day in prison. That was longer than she'd spent. It still counted as revenge.

The day was still young. So Azula headed for the Jasmine Dragon.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

And that's a wrap.

This chapter took a while to put out. I wasn't sure what to have Azula work on and how to factor it into her overall character arc. I had the idea of having one of the skills she learns be interrogation — a sort of twist to the whole thing. And then I realized that Azula had changed a lot more than she liked to admit.

Do you think this development is unnatural? Should I have had her go through with it?


	10. Acceptance

**Chapter Ten: Acceptance**

Azula arrived in the Jasmine Dragon and stopped. She waited outside it for a moment and realized how toothless she was bordering on looking. She had literally given up a chance to torture an enemy into a sobbing mess. With a new technique no less!

She had to do something to redeem herself.

Was there a puppykitten around here to kick or something? No such luck.

So she walked into the Jasmine Dragon, reluctantly. Zuzu was there and approached. "Hello, Welcome to the Jasmine-" He trailed off.

"White dragon tea, please." said Azula.

"Azula!" said Zuzu.

"Hey. I'm not here to fight, Lee." said Azula, emphasizing Lee. "Can we talk?"

Zuzu looked back to Uncle, who was likewise shocked. Then back to Azula. Then back to Uncle. "...Uncle, I'd like to take my break early."

"Of course, nephew." said Uncle.

They sat down, and Azula looked across the table at Zuzu. He looked annoyed where before he had been happy. Odd the effect she always had on him.

"What do you want, Azula?" said Zuzu.

Azula considered how best to say what she needed to say. She opened her mouth, but no words came out. She shook her head. "I don't want to hurt people anymore."

"It's a bit late for a change of heart-" said Zuzu.

"No, it's not a change of heart! It's a fact!" said Azula. "I haven't hurt anyone I didn't have to in the last... I don't know; calenders don't work for me."

"Five minutes?" suggested Zuzu at a guess.

"Longer than that." said Azula.

Zuzu remained silent. He looked at her, hard. "...What do you want me to say?"

"I don't know." said Azula. "You're the one who was always trying to protect those stupid turtleducks. I thought you might have some insight."

"Azula, not hurting people for fun is not a problem you need to solve." said Zuzu. "It's basic human decency."

"I've gotten on just fine while enjoying it." said Azula, crossing her hands and looking away.

"I know." said Zuzu.

Azula felt his gaze on her. She remained silent for a long moment. Finally, she couldn't bear it any longer. "What? Why are you looking at me like that? It's not my fault Dad favored me. Really, I'm much more similar to him than you."

Zuzu slammed his hand against the ground. "You think-"

And then Jin arrived. She was pretty cute, as always. "Oh hey, Lee-" And then she hesitated. "Wait, who is this?"

"Oh this is my sister." said Zuzu quickly.

"Yes, I'm Azula." said Azula, leaning back.

"That's a weird name. It sounds fire nation." said Jin.

"We had to flee one of the colonies." said Azula. "Our Mother got in serious trouble, and we got separated. Last I heard Zuzu joined the circus.

"I guess I finally tracked him down."

"Well it's nice to meet you." said the girl, leaning forward. "I'm Jin. I'm sort of Lee's girlfriend. But what's this Zuzu thing?"

"Nothing, it was a nickname!" said Zuzu quickly. "That's all." He shifted nervously. "Can I help you Jin?"

"Well I was wondering if you might want to go see something with me." said Jin. "See there is this really nice old tower, and when you're on it, you can see the entire city.

"Want to come?"

"Well..." Zuzu looked to Azula.

"Your sister can come to, of course." said Jin quickly.

"I'll ask Uncle." said Zuzu.

"Go on nephew." laughed Uncle. "This old man can take care of his own tea shop for a bit."

* * *

And so Azula found herself walking with Zuko and Jin through the streets of the city. Just like before. Why was this familiar? The streets around her, she'd seem them before. Many loops ago.

Most of her training had been limited to the finer districts. She hadn't been in the slums for many loops.

Then they ran into that same old man. He didn't look very healthy. He had probably not eaten in a long time, judging from his appearance. Fortunately, Zuko gave him some coins before he could come to Azula.

A lot of coins. It was one thing for Azula to do it, the money didn't matter. But it bothered her that Zuko did it. And gave him so much.

"Why did you give him all that money, Lee?" asked Azula, annoyed. "You could have just given him one. He'll probably be robbed before the end of the day."

"I had to live by begging for some time when I was traveling here." said Zuko. "I know what it's like. And I never want anyone to experience it."

"Really?" said Jin, her brow furrowing. "Was this before you joined the Circus?"

"Yes." said Zuko. "I uh... Well no. It was after. Things went badly because of the war."

Jin looked away. As if suspecting something. But she said nothing.

So 'circus' was code for Azula trying to arrest him. Still, that was insignificant compared to the fact that Zuko and Uncle had been begging. What? Couldn't they have robbed some caravans or something?

It was probably Uncle's idea, now that Azula thought of it. Still, she could still mock Zuzu for it. "You and Uncle spent time as beggars? And here I thought you had class, Lee."

"We were starving." snapped Zuko, looking at her angrily. "You've never had to worry about your next meal, Azula. Father always wanted you."

And awkward. Or at least Jin seemed to think it was awkward from the way she shifted. "Um..."

Both of them looked at her, hard. "Yes?"

Jin forced herself to look bright and made that cute little cat smile she had. She looked at Zuko. "So, uh, how did you get out of begging?"

Lee sighed. He looked guilty. It was hilarious. "I went into thievery."

Oh, so they did start raiding caravans. Smart. Wait, why was Jin gasping?

"What?" said Jin. "But why?"

"A soldier forced my Uncle to dance, swinging his swords at him." said Zuko. "Uncle just took it, putting on a smile. I got angry, and I tracked the man down. I beat him to a pulp and stole his swords.

"After that I just... it came easily. I tried to target rich people, who could afford it, or who I thought deserved it. But Uncle didn't approve so... so I ended up going off on my own." He sighed. "Eventually I stopped stealing."

"What made you stop?" asked Jin. She seemed to be wrestling with some inner struggle. Azula wasn't in the habit of caring, though.

"I came to a village, and it was being terrorized by soldiers." said Zuko. "Earth Kingdom soldiers. They were supposed to protect the place, but they were just robbing the locals.

"I realized that I had become just like them."

"What did you do?" asked Jin.

"...I drove the soldiers out of the town." said Zuko. "Then I was run out by the people there."

"You're not really from the circus, are you Lee?" asked Jin.

Zuko met her gaze. "No."

There was silence.

At last, they came to the tower. The same tower Azula had climbed with Mai and Ty Lee all that time ago. They scaled up it quickly and as she did Azula looked at the city. Really looked at it.

She'd been set on measuring the wind all this time. Now, as she reached the top, Azula felt the wind on her face. The sight of the sun setting in the distance made Azula halt where she was.

They looked at the view. And Azula realized that it was truly beautiful. The way the light filtered through the city streets at this height was breathtaking. Why hadn't she noticed this before?

She'd been focused on a mission.

"See, isn't this nice?" asked Jin.

She'd been here before. With Jin and Zuko. Ty Lee and Mai had been there too. But she'd hardly noticed any of it.

"Yes. Yes it is." said Zuko.

The two of them walked to the edge, and Azula followed. She felt a lump growing in her throat. She didn't know why. How long had she been in this city? How many days that she had forgotten this tower?

"You're a firebender." said Jin. "You're from the Fire Nation."

Oh, this was going to be good. Zuzu's desperate denials would be hilarious! He'd never been a good liar!

"Yes." said Lee.

Well, surely Jin would reject him and storm off. Or call the Dai Li or something. Maybe she'd slap him. It'd be great.

"It doesn't matter." said Jin. "People come to Ba Sing Se to start over and... well... I don't think a spy would be working in a tea shop."

What? This wasn't right. Good things happened to Azula, not Zuko. They were just determined to ruin this for her, weren't they?

"How long have you suspected?" asked Zuko.

"Well..." Jin paused. "I remember that this one time Lee told me to close my eyes when we found all the lights in an area were out. And there was that boy, Jet, who attacked you. When I opened them a moment later, all the lights were lit.

"I kept thinking about it. And I couldn't think of any way the trick could be done without control over fire." She paused. "I don't know what it is you were running from, Lee, but it doesn't really matter."

"Thank you Jin." said Zuko.

What?

How was that even possible?! How did someone know that someone was from an enemy nation and just accept them! Azula would never have... well she might... no, she wouldn't. She didn't know what she'd do now.

Azula had changed, she realized. She'd spent so long in this city that it had shifted something in her. She tried to push it back, but it had shifted through her fingers like sand. It used to be so simple. She was Princess Azula of the Fire Nation. She wanted to subjugate these peasants. To bring the glorious Fire Nation to final victory.

She was still Princess Azula. But it didn't matter what she wanted.

Azula wanted to go home. She wanted to get out. To do something, return to the palace. She'd been looking forward to returning in triumph before all this began. But at this rate, she might never return.

What if there was no way out?

"Is something wrong?" asked Jin.

Azula realized that there were tears in her eyes. She wiped them away quickly. What the hell was happening to her. "No, I just... I've been here. In this place. A long time ago."

"No, you haven't." said Zuko.

Azula shifted. "No, you're right. Not before today."

Azula stayed with her brother and Jin atop that tower. They talked about things, minor things. She learned about people Jin knew, of the new refugees. About how things were changing. Until when the sun began to set Azula realized her time was going to end soon.

"Are you heading back to... wherever you are staying." said Zuko.

"Yes." said Azula.

"Is it far?" asked Jin. "You really shouldn't wander the streets at night. Why don't you both stay at my place for the night? We'd love to have you."

"I..." Zuko looked to Azula.

"I'd appreciate that." said Azula.

They walked with Jin to her families house. Her parents were already in bed, of course. Jin gave Azula was given a place to sleep, far worse than it would have been in the palace. Zuko kept looking at her as if he expected her to start setting things on fire.

Nothing made sense anymore.

Who was Azula? And what did she want?

* * *

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. She got to her feet and looked at herself in the mirror. There were more skills she could learn.

But the lust for self-improvement wasn't enough. Azula could learn every skill under the sun. But it wouldn't change the fact that she was here. And she was empty.

All her powers, abilities and skills didn't change anything. Azula could not achieve anything like this. But... maybe she didn't need to.

So what then?

It would be worthwhile learning a bit more about Ba Sing Se. And the people within it.

* * *

** Author's Note:**

So I'd like to talk about the one flaw in Groundhog Day the movie. The movie is nearly perfect, but there is one problem. It is a comedy. Unfortunately, as you near the end of the movie, the comedy dries up.

After all, most of the humor from the story comes from Phil Conners being kind of a jerk and getting up to wacky antics. Then he starts being really nice to people. While the movie is great and heartwarming after that, it isn't nearly as funny.

I have a similar problem here. Azula is defined in a certain way. Within the bounds of this fic, I have to have her transform into a completely different person. But she has to still be Azula at the end of it if you know what I mean. It's easy to write Azula as a sadistic jerkass, and watching her suffer is half the fun. But having her change is tricky.

This chapter is really how things developed so far. I kind of feel like it happened too quickly. But at the same time, once Azula realized she didn't care about hurting people anymore, it sort of destroyed the last foundation of old identity. Azula is defined by three things. Her obsession with control through fear. Her ambition. And her sadism. Everything she does interweaves these three elements throughout Avatar.

But in the loop, she has no control. Her fate is to wake up the same morning and do the day over again. Nothing she does can change that. Her ambition, represented by her desire to conquer Ba Sing Se and kill the Avatar, is fulfilled and rendered meaningless. That leaves only her sadism, and that lasted her a lot longer.

But it finally burnt out, so her whole world has kind of collapsed. She hit rock bottom a few chapters ago. So she has nowhere to go but up. Or that's the way I see her development.


	11. Invitation to Serve Tea

**Chapter Eleven: Invitation to Serve Tea**

As Azula got dressed, she began to think. When she'd first gotten into this loop, she'd repeated the same day trying to win. To completely win. And when that hadn't worked, she'd tried making others suffer. It had been fun while it lasted. But there was only so many times you could kick a puppykitten before its mewling ceased to amuse.

So what now?

Well, she had enjoyed the feeling she'd gotten from making Ty Lee and Mai happier. It didn't benefit her, but it wasn't like she was losing anything. Maybe she should try being nice to people and making their lives better.

Yes, that was it. She would no longer just repeat the same cruelties over and over again. Nor would she focus only on improving herself. She would work to help others.

Maybe.

Well, other people, she knew.

Actually, she should hone in on people she knew and liked. Although Azula didn't like people so much as find amusement in them. So people she liked, who amused her, and who had a use.

Although since she could change nothing, no one had a use.

People she knew and who amused her then. So how was she supposed to be nice to them?

As she finished dressing, Azula walked out of the room.

"Azula-" began Ty Lee.

"Not now, Ty Lee." said Azula. "I need advice on how to be nice to people."

"You want to be nice to people?" asked Mai skeptically.

"No." said Azula. "It's theoretical. I figure if I can get people to like me, they'll be more easily manipulated. At some point in the future.

"Look I want to do something nice for someone. But I don't know what to do."

"Well..." Ty Lee paused. "What do they like?"

Azula paused. She wasn't sure who she was talking about. On a whim, her mind turned to Zuko and Uncle. "...Tea?"

"Well then, you should do something to do with that." said Ty Lee. "Um, you could throw them a party or something."

"Shouldn't we focus on the coup?" asked Mai.

"Good point." said Azula. "I entrust taking care of the coup to you, Mai. I had an idea."

When she had first corrupted Zuko, she had gotten him into the palace through subterfuge. She had offered him and Uncle the chance to serve tea. If she recalled, Zuko and Uncle had been very enthusiastic about it. Or Uncle was. Zuko was humoring him.

Azula couldn't imagine anyone except Uncle being enthusiastic about tea. What was so special about it?

Even so, she walked back into her room and began to write.

* * *

Azula kneeled before the throne of the Earth King. She'd been here many times, and she'd made this decision many times. But this was a new combination. Usually, after her coup took place, she gave the order to the Dai Li.

Now she had to spin it to the Earth King. Already she had found a new experience. "Excuse me, your majesty, I've got the details of a coup on the part of the Dai Li. I have a list of the ringleaders. If you send the listed agents to the listed locations, they should be able to capture them easily." She offered the letter.

The Earth King came forward and took it, looking over it. "This is invaluable. But how did you learn of this?"

"I pretended to be a foolish Princess Azula in disguise. Then I manipulated them into giving me control of their operations. My agents are running their coup." said Azula. "Don't worry, I've already arranged for the coup to be rounded up, that's just a formality. Though they may have spread the rumor around a bit."

The Earth King blinked. "...Thank you."

"Yes." said Azula. "Tell me, your majesty, how do you feel about tea?"

"Well I love it." said the Earth King. "Why do you ask?"

"There is a teamaker in the city named Mushi." said Azula. "He and his nephew, Lee are said to be naturals at it. They've been here less than a month, and they are also known as the finest teamakers in Ba Sing Se."

"Really? That's remarkable." said the Earth King. "But I'm not sure I should be doing this, what with the plans for the invasion."

Well, that was unexpected. The Earth King had never struck her as dutiful. She'd have to do something more with this. "Actually there is another reason I was suggesting this. I've noticed that there aren't any people from the lower districts of Ba Sing Se in the palace."

"Well no." said the Earth King. "People who work their way into the palace might have descendants who live in the lower districts. But Long Feng believed it would be a security risk to let them in."

"Meaning that nobody in the palace actually understands the poorer districts." guessed Azula.

"Well, no. I have experts." said the Earth King.

"Where do these experts get their data?" asked Azula. "Do they go out into the districts?"

"No, they get reports from my agents in the city." said the Earth King.

"Meaning that they are operating off of second-hand information." said Azula. "Which means all the information you get is third hand."

"I suppose so." admitted the Earth King. "But I don't think any of them would lie to you."

"Maybe. Maybe not." said Azula. "But if they give you a bad report they could lose their jobs, couldn't they?"

"Well if things were mismanaged I'd have to assign someone else." said the Earth King.

"Exactly." said Azula, standing up. "So if something goes wrong, a few minor things, they might decide to downplay them. Just to make the record look better, not meaning any harm." Edge in little by little.

"I suppose." said the Earth King.

"Right. So you imagine you have a series of riots in one of the lower districts." said Azula, walking forward. "The people who report to your experts say that there was a 'minor disturbance, now in hand.' They might not even think its a lie.

"Then the experts get the data, and they make a report that says 'no trouble in the lower districts.' And it's true, even from their perspective. No sense in troubling you."

"But the riots could grow." said the Earth King.

"Exactly." said Azula. "You don't know there is a problem because no one things you ought to be troubled about it. The more hands information passes through, the more it gets distorted. In Kyoshi, all problems are reported directly to the leader.

"That won't work for you; the Earth Kingdom has too many problems. But you need to have someone who understands things briefing you."

"How do the teamakers fit into this?" asked the Earth King.

"Mushi and Li came here as refugees." said Azula. "They've seen the best and the worst of the Earth Kingdom. They can give you a firsthand account of what things are like out there. They've also worked in the lower districts.

"There was a recent case where a boy named Jet accused them of being firebenders and assaulted them. They've seen the absolute worst side of the Earth Kingdom. And that's the side you need to worry about."

"So you think they can help me understand the problems of the Earth Nation people?" said the Earth King.

"Exactly." said Azula. She paused. "There is another thing. I suspect that they had to flee the Fire Nation colonies owing to a feud with a very powerful man. Lee has a serious burn on this eye. So they can also help you understand your enemy."

"Wouldn't that be unsafe?" asked the Earth King.

And then Azula had a wonderful idea. It would take some doing, but she could pull it off. She smiled. She'd do it on the first try. "You can have the Avatar's friend, Katara, standing by when it happens, of course. But, there is something you should know. This boy who attacked Li and Mushi, he's called Jet. He was a notorious bandit who attempted to destroy an entire town of Earth Kingdom citizens. He would have created a flood to wash over the entire town, killing men, women, and children.

"It was actually the Fire Nation who evacuated them in time." No sense in letting him think the Fire Nation were all monsters. She'd heard the story from Katara during one of their sessions. Good times. The memory of her writhing was a good one.

"Well that does sound unpleasant." said the Earth King. "But this Jet is imprisoned, isn't he."

"Dead, actually. He was killed by Long Feng." said Azula. "But there is one problem. Jet isn't a water bender. Neither were any of the people who worked for him.

"He actually tricked the Avatar and Katara into starting the flood."

The Earth King's eyes went wide. "But the Avatar would never do anything like that!"

"Not of his own will." said Azula. "But somehow Jet confused their minds and senses. They believed that what they were doing would not hurt anyone. He mist have been a powerful sorcerer."

"...If this is true, then what of it?" asked the Earth King. "Surely he is dead now?"

Azula looked around, feigning fear. As though she was expecting shadowy figures to emerge from the walls. "I'm concerned that some part of his spell may linger on the Avatar's companion, Katara. The Avatar has shaken off the effects, but it may still be on her. I don't know why Jet decided to murder Lee and Mushi, but his death was a result of Lee fighting him off.

"It may be that when Katara sees him, some last curse of Jet's could take effect. Filling her mind with beliefs that are not her own. If so, you should have the guard standing by to restrain her.

"We'll be able to keep her secure until we can find a way to break the spell."

The Earth King looked deeply troubled. The naive moron was buying this. This was too rich. "Well, if you believe it is that serious, there is no harm in testing the matter."

Then Azula remembered that Uncle had not brought Jin with her the last time. Or any of the other times. For some reason she wanted her to be there. "Oh, and um, I think it best if you request Mushi bring his whole staff today."

The Earth King blinked. "Why?"

When in doubt, appeal to the ego. "Well, it is only appropriate, given that you are the Earth King. It wouldn't be right if they didn't make every effort."

The Earth King nodded. "Of course. I'll write the invitation myself."

"And I'll take it personally, of course." said Azula.

The Earth King wrote his invitation and sealed it. Azula took the invitation and walked out.

Sucker.

* * *

Once again Azula came to the Jasmine Dragon. It was during the early hours. In fact, she'd gotten here before it was opened. The door was opened, and Azula was the first in. She found Zuzu smiling as always. "Hello, welcome to the Jasmine-" He stopped. "Azula?"

Was it just her, or did his smile disappear a bit slower this time? Had she done something to change how he felt about her? But that was impossible. "Hello, you're Lee aren't you? I've got a message for your Uncle Mushi? Can I impose on you to keep the store closed a few moments longer?"

Zuko remained silent for a moment. "I'll talk to him."

Uncle cooperated, and five minutes later he and Zuko were eyeing Azula suspiciously. Azula did her best to appear innocent before them.

"So, you're acting as a messenger for the Earth King's palace now, Azula?" asked Uncle. "You certainly know how to appear in unexpected places."

"You flatter me, Uncle." said Azula, offering the letter. "The message is there."

Uncle unrolled it and looked over it. His eyes widened, and he looked pleased, then suspicious. He passed it to Zuko. "Nephew, look at this."

Zuko looked up warily. "The last time we listened to an invitation from you, you tried to throw us in prison."

Azula spread her arms out. "Oh come on, Zuzu. Don't tell me that shooting Uncle with a lightning bolt has put a rift between us? All I did was hound you day and night across a continent." His annoyed expression was adorable.

"May I inquire as to what the reason is for this?" asked Uncle.

"Oh, I'm just a humble servant of the Earth King, Uncle." said Azula, bowing sarcastically. "I heard that the 'Greatest Tea Maker in All of Ba Sing Se.' I thought I might invite them.

"How was I to know who you were?"

"What do you want, Azula?" asked Zuko.

"I want you to come to serve tea to the Earth King." said Azula. "I thought we might make it a family get together. And if you don't come, I'll tell everyone who you are, and get you thrown in prison."

They looked at each other carefully. Then back to her. "You certainly do make a persuasive argument." said Uncle.

"I know." said Azula.

The door opened and in walked Jin in a rush. Her hair was more unkept than usual, and she looked to have dressed quickly. "Mushi, Lee, sorry I'm late. I got delayed at the gate." She paused as she saw Azula and Zuko. "Um, why did the door say 'closed?'"

"Jin wonderful news." said Uncle. "We've been asked to serve tea to the Earth King. He's asked for all of us to attend."

Azula decided that was her cue to leave. "I'll let you three get ready. I've got some errands to run before I get back to the palace. I'll meet you there."

And she walked out.

Trying to be nice to people was all well and good. But if she could mix it with destroying her enemies, so much the better.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

So when I write, I try to get a sense for the character in my head. I think about what matters to them, what defines them, and how they express it. Once you get the hang of that, it becomes easy.

The trick is this:

If you have a character say something, ask yourself: Could I see this character acting this way in the show? If not, what could drive them to do so? Getting from point A to point B is the trick.

Many people skipped the in between and go straight to point B in their fix fics. This makes the dialogue seem unnatural and drags the narrative down.

I often adjust my plans because a given character acts in a manner contrary to what I want. Sometimes entire story arcs change because the characters act contrary to my expectations.

Well, I do that when writing Azula. And Azula really does come across as a depraved bisexual to me, for some reason. Whenever I write her with anyone, I feel like there is a sexual dynamic with every character she meets. The Earth King, Zuko, Jin, Ty Lee, Mai, you name it. There are a few exceptions, mostly in the older cast.

And I'm not alone. A vast majority of fics feature her are of the opinion that she's a dominatrix. And that's the tamer ones.


	12. Tea and Karma

**Chapter Twelve: Tea and Karma**

Azula got back to find Mai and Ty Lee relaxing in their room. Ty Lee was practicing handstands, while Mai was preoccupied with target practice. They looked up as Azula entered.

"So what were those errands you went on, Azula?" asked Ty Lee.

"Oh just filling time." said Azula.

"How?" asked Ty Lee.

Azula paused, somewhat embarrassed at what she was doing. "…I was reading Earth Kingdom history. I've got to do something to pass the time. Anyone, we, the Kyoshi Warriors will be attending the Earth King's tea party. As discussed."

"You'll finally get to meet with Zuko again, Mai." said Ty Lee.

"Shut up." said Mai. "We should probably get dressed."

"True." said Azula. "But we're going to be fashionably late, I want to listen in on something."

"What, exactly?" asked Mai.

Azula smiled. "You'll see. This will be priceless."

And that was how the Kyoshi warriors made their way to the room where the Earth King would be having his tea. Kneeling by the door, Azula waited in the shadows as Katara walked past.

"Thank you for attending, Katara." said the Earth King. "I'm glad you could."

"It's fine." said Katara. "I had to deliver this message for your approval from the generals anyway."

"Well, we'll take care of that soon enough." said the Earth King. "Today I'm going to be visited by the finest tea maker in Ba Sing Se. Would you care to sit with me?"

Katara sat down. "Of course."

And then Mushi, Lee, and Jin entered, carrying with them sea. Azula looked in as they came and Katara's eyes went wide.

"Ah, here they are now." said the Earth King.

"Zuko?! What are you doing here?" said Katara.

Mushi flinched. Or Uncle flinched."…There must be some mistake. This is my nephew Lee, and I am Mushi."

"Your majesty, these two aren't teamakers!" said Katara. "They're Prince Iroh, the Dragon of the West, and Prince Zuko of the Fire Nation!"

"Don't be ridiculous." said Uncle. "Do you really think my nephew and I would be serving tea in Ba Sing Se if we were hunting the Avatar.

"We mean no harm, I assure you."

Katara seemed to consider that and reluctantly sat down. "I'm sorry; it must have been my mistake."

"Damn, she's calming down." said Azula. And then she had just the perfect idea.

She stepped into the entryway and walked forward. Katara's eyes could have been dinnerplates. "Your majesty, Katara, I apologize for being so late. We got lost in these halls. How are you Katara?"

"Azula!" said Katara.

"Azula?" asked Azula. "What do you mean? I'm Suki."

Katara stood and summoned her water whip, slashing it at her. Azula stepped away, looking shocked. "You are not Suki! Your majesty that's Princess Azula!"

"Katara, calm down." said Azula. "What's come over you!"

"What's come over me?" said Katara, before freezing her against the pillar. "Where are Suki and the Kyoshi Warriors!"

And then Ty Lee and Mai grabbed her from behind, pulling her back.

"We are them." said Mai. "Calm down Katara."

"Yeah, nobody is trying to hurt you." said Ty Lee.

"No you're not!" screamed Katara, shaking her off.

"Guards, quickly, detain her." said the Earth King.

Instantly the Earth King guards entered. Hands of earth gripped Katara, pulling her hands behind her back.

"Your Majesty!" said Katara. "You have to let me go! These people are all Fire Nation!"

"It's as you feared, Suki." said the Earth King sadly. "Jet's sorcery must have cast some sort of madness over her."

Katara stared, shocked. "Jet? Jet is dead! And he's not a sorcerer! This is Princess Azula!"

"Katara, please, snap out of it." said Azula, flashing her a smile that no one else could see. "We're your friends."

"Get off me!" cried Katara, as she was dragged off, screaming.

"Take her to her quarters and keep her restrained until the madness passes." said the Earth King. "But don't hurt her."

"Their Fire Nation Royalty, I'm telling you!" yelled Katara as she was pulled around the corner. "They're all Firebenders!"

Azula nodded, then melted the ice around her. She did it slowly enough that she hoped it would look like it fell apart naturally. Jin's eyes widened, and she looked to the Earth King. But the Earth King did not notice. "….It's the simple things in life you treasure."

"I thought your name was Azula." said Jin suddenly. "That's what Lee and Mushi called you?"

Azula flinched. That girl was bright. She'd only had her name mentioned in passing. "Just a nickname that he called me when we were children. We used to play at being Prince and Princesses, you see."

Okay, what was up here? Why hadn't Jin pointed things out?

"I suppose everyone did that at some point." said the Earth King. "Even me.

"It's unfortunate that Jet has driven her into madness. Even so, I'm sure she'll make a recovery once the Avatar returns. Now please, all of you sit down."

Azula and the others sat down with them.

"Hello, Lee." said Mai in deadpan.

Zuko flushed. "Mai, it's been uh…"

"Years." said Mai. She was glaring daggers at Jin.

"Right, years." said Zuko.

"Wow, that's the closest Mai has ever gotten to an expression before now." said Ty Lee.

"You two know each other?" asked Jin, her voice having an edge in it.

"I spent some time in the circus and visited Kyoshi at several points." said Zuko.

"Perhaps we should move on." said Uncle. "We are here to serve tea to royalty."

The Earth King smiled. "So we are."

Tea was served, and the Earth King clearly enjoyed it. Minor conversations were brought up. They talked about the weather, the hope inspired by the avatar. Zuko flinched at these. Several stories had to be manufactured to explain how everyone knew each other. Jin kept on remaining silent the whole time, listening.

Azula was afraid she'd blow the whole thing. Already she suspected that Zuko had not been entirely honest with her. If she came to believe that he was a prince, she might not be so forgiving.

"So, tell me, Suki." said Uncle. "What was all this about Jet being a sorcerer?"

Was he trying to get them exposed?

"Just a minor matter now." said the Earth King. " "This is truly excellent tea. Your reputation is well deserved." That was not a lie. He was on his third cup.

"Thank you your majesty." said Uncle.

"I have a confession to make, however. I didn't only invite you here for tea." said the Earth King. "I'm told you traveled through the entire Earth Kingdom on your way here. So did you Kyoshi Warriors."

"Actually, our journey took us through Fire Nation territory." said Ty Lee. "We were scouting."

"Well, that too can help a great deal." said the Earth King. "Long Feng told me to know my enemy. Though I suppose I should have instead known who my enemies were."

There was an awkward silence.

"…Very wise words." said Uncle after a moment. "Sometimes enemies and friends alike can crop up in the most unlikely of places. You must learn to keep an open mind.

"Then you'll know them when you see them."

"Speaking of which," said the Earth King. "I was hoping you could tell me the things you saw, so I could better understand my nation."

Uncle paused. "Well... the first thing you ought to remember is that the war has cost all the nations a great deal…"

They gave a series of accounts of the adventures and misadventures they had faced. Both doctored to omit any reverence to royalty. Azula's chase after Zuko became a tragic misunderstanding with the law. Uncle was very good at lying, better than Azula had given him credit. Azula, of course, had worked out her story ahead of time.

But Uncle seemed to have gone from tea maker to advisor very quickly. His tales of the poverty of some parts of the Earth Kingdom shocked the King. Azula realized that he had probably never heard of any of this. Zuko's description of rogue soldiers terrorizing a town was particularly chilling.

And he'd been run out at the end of it. Jin's eyes perked up when she heard that last bit. Zuko's explanation hadn't been a very good one, but it seemed to convince the Earth King.

It didn't convince Jin. This whole time she just listened.

Azula tried to think of what she would do in Jin's position if she suspected Katara was telling the truth. Obviously not speak out. The Earth King would never believe her, and Jin had no evidence. Even if she did expose them, Azula, Zuko, and Iroh would be accomplished Fire Benders.

Jin couldn't do anything. Nothing but stay silent.

Perhaps she might expose them somehow. But could she? Yes, she might make a convincing case, but it would have to go through the guards. Would they really admit that a tea shop employee had found something they didn't? Especially when the Earth King trusted them.

Evidently, Long Feng had owned all the competent guards.

It was hilarious. There were four kinds of people in this room — first, Enemies of the Earth Kingdom. Second, an absolute monarch who had been born to rule and heavily educated. Third, highly trained guards whose only job was to protect the Earth King. An uneducated peasant girl who worked in a tea shop somehow had the most sense out of everyone in this palace.

As Azula got a second helping of tea, Jin looked more tense by the minute. She was afraid but trying to hide it. It looked adorable, like a frightened rabbit surrounded by wolves, frozen in place quivering. It was adorable.

Azula would love to wrap her arms around her, to drive that terror just a bit further into it. Watch her squirm as she fondled those ample breasts of hers. She realized she was licking her lips.

That settled it. If Azula ever got out of this loop she was taking Jin home with her.

* * *

Later, as the conversation went on, Azula excused herself. Uncle had more or less gained control of the conversation. The Earth King was already taking notes like some schoolchild.

Give Uncle a weak and he'd be the power behind the throne.

For her part, Azula made her way out onto a terrace and looked over the city. The sun was setting. Soon the loop would begin again and the day would be over. Gradually she became aware of Zuko walking out after her.

"I never thought I'd end up having tea with you and the Earth King." said Zuko.

"I never expected a lot of things, Zuzu." admitted Azula.

Zuko looked over the city, then to her. "Why did you do this, Azula? The Earth King said you stopped a coup. What about the Fire Nation?"

"I could have taken the place over, again." admitted Azula. "But I just thought I'd do something nice for someone else."

"And Katara?" asked Zuko.

"And get revenge on an annoying water peasant at the same time." admitted Azula. "Anyway, Uncle seemed to enjoy giving advice."

"He's very good at that." said Zuko. "So how long do you think you'll be able to keep this up?"

Azula paused. "Well, you're friend Jin might be able to figure something out. The Avatar should be finishing up the things I did to stall him. But I'll last until the end of the day."

"And what about tomorrow?" asked Zuko.

Azula leaned against the railing. "There is no tomorrow, Zuko. There never was one."

And then, on a whim, she leaned in and kissed him. Drawing back, Zuko froze and stepped back. He put a hand to his lips. "..Why did you..."

"To see the look on your face." said Azula, smiling.

Then she glanced up to see Jin coming through the door. Has she seen? Azula didn't really care. She approached. "Lee, um... Suki is it?"

"Yes." said Azula.

"Well, Mushi wants us to head back to the Jasmine Dragon." said Jin. "Though the Earth King... he says that he wants us to come back."

"That's great news." said Zuko. "Uncle will be really pleased. I'll be right there."

As they walked off, Azula looked back to the city. Common people apparently had a thing against close relatives marrying each other. But marriage between cousins was commonplace in the Fire Nation. And marriage between siblings was not unheard of in the Royal Family.

Besides, it wasn't as if anything would change between now and this morning, would it? Even so, this had made her realize something. People tended to overlook the common people. They overlooked them a lot.

It was a blind spot for her as well. And she didn't want to exhaust the potential from toying with people close to her. "That settles it." said Azula. "This morning, I'm going into the main city."

* * *

**Author's Note:**

So yeah, I feel a bit awkward posting this chapter. But when I write characters, I write what they choose to do, not what I want them to do. One leads to an organic storyline with real characters. The other leads to a puppet show.


	13. What is Perfection?

**Chapter Thirteen: What is Perfection?**

The next day Azula made her way through the lower districts. Her hands were in her pockets and her eyes scanned over the people. They were poor. She could see old and young alike walking the streets in rags.

The buildings were ramshackle. Many had broken roofs. None of them had proper windows. The guards were poorly armed, to say the least. And they were few and far between.

So this was the place where Jin lived. It was funny, she'd walked down this road many times before. But back then she'd been so dead set on burning down Ba Sing Se she hadn't noticed the people. They were just background characters in the play that was her life.

Not that Azula felt sorry for them or anything.

"Could you spare a few coins." asked that same old man.

Azula drew out a few and tossed them. "Here. Take them. Now leave me alone."

The man got to his knees and picked them up, before limping away. Azula watched him go for a moment. Then she continued on.

She wasn't really sure why she was here, so early in the morning.

Azula worked best when she had an objective. Master lightning. Take over Ba Sing Se. Corrupt Zuko. But she didn't have one now. What should she do in this miserable little section of the city.

Well, what did she want?

Jin.

'Hello there, pretty lady.' said a voice.

Several rough looking men emerged from an alley and surrounded her. They gestured. 'Hand over all your money and we'll be gentle.'

Azula almost blasted them with fire. Then she remembered she couldn't do that. She closed her eyes and drew out her sack of coins.

Then shrew threw it in his face. The man reeled backward, nose broken, as Azula surged forward and crushed his throat. Stepping aside from a knife blow, she grabbed another and snapped his neck. From there she threw the man into one of his friends.

The man stood, took a look at his two dead friends, and made a run for it. Bunch of insufferable muggers. They didn't even have the decency to stand their ground and die.

Azula walked on.

* * *

She wasn't at all sure about what path she was taking, but it was familiar. Gradually she realized it was the way to Jin's home. Eventually she came to it and halted there, waiting. Jin's house was significantly nicer than the average. She was, apparently, well to do by peasant standards.

Should she approach? Or just watch? It wasn't like she was in a rush. And what would she say if she did approach.

'Oh hello Jin." said Azula sarcastically. 'I know you've never seen me before but I know everything there is to know about you. Would you mind becoming my slave in a future loop. Even if you won't remember this conversation.

'Also I'm secretly Fire Nation royalty, blah, blah, blah.' She sighed. 'Not workable.'

No, a direct approach would not work. For now, she should focus on gathering information. Once she knew everything about her, she could get out of this time loop and arrange for Jin to become hers.

She was already close with Zuko, so it should be possible.

She noted a number of people staring. 'There is no war in Ba Sing Se. Look elsewhere.'

They took the point. Pretending to be Dai Li could get you places.

The door opened and Jin hurried out. She paused and looked into the building. "I'm going now Mom, goodbye."

An older woman looked out the door at her and smiled. "Have a nice day, dear." she said. "And be careful."

And Jin rushed off on her own. Azula watched her run and sighed. "Touching."

She turned and began to walk back to the main district, hands in her pockets. As she did, she thought about her options.

The problem was that Jin didn't know her. She did know Zuko, though. Maybe Azula could bring over to her side by exploiting her past with him. But Jin didn't know her. Then again, Jin only knew that Zuko was a firebender. If she knew he was a Prince she might not be so forgiving. Especially if said Prince had just helped take over her city.

In essence, Azula had to establish a relationship. Otherwise her hopes of manipulating the girl for her own ends were doomed. Well, barring forcing the issue. But this was more fun. So, how to go about it?

This was harder than Azula thought.

After a moment she decided she'd ask Ty Lee for advice.

* * *

In the Jasmine Dragon, Ty Lee sipped her tea. Azula sat across from her, tapping her fingers on the table and trying to think about what to say. She'd talked Zuko into not making a scene easily enough. It got easier with every loop, actually. Now she just had to ask the question.

She might as well be direct about it. "Ty Lee, if you wanted someone to join you and you couldn't threaten to murder them or their family to do it, what would you do?"

Ty Lee paused. "Um, Azula, you do realize that most people don't make friends by threatening them into submission, don't you?"

It had worked with Mai and Ty Lee, hadn't it? "I'm not most people. Answer the question." said Azula.

Ty Lee sipped her tea. "Well, you could try and approach them and make friends."

"Right. I can do that." said Azula. She paused for a moment. "How do I do that?"

Ty Lee smiled. "Try approaching them and being friendly. Introduce yourself. Make small talk."

"About what?" asked Azula.

"Well, the weather. Clothes. Hairstyles." said Ty Lee.

"That all sounds dreadfully insignificant." said Azula.

"Well, that's why it's called small talk. It's supposed to be insignificant." said Ty Lee.

"I see." said Azula.

She raised her tea and sipped it. She didn't like this variety as much as the last kind she'd tried. It was still decent, though. "So the first step would be to calculate when exactly she is most emotionally vulnerable." said Azula, raising a hand and clenching it. "Then, when she is at her weakest, I'll strike. I'll break her defenses and seize her by the throat!" A smile came to her lips.

"You aren't planning to kill anyone, are you Azula?" asked Ty Lee.

"No, just make small talk." said Azula. Why would she ask that? It was only a metaphor. "Still, that's something for another day. What should I do for the rest?"

"Well we could work on the coup." said Ty Lee.

Azula sighed and leaned back in her seat and looked up at the ceiling. How many times were Mai and Ty Lee going to suggest that. It had been Azula's idea. She bloody well had the right to not go through with it. "No, not worth it. I've done that one too many times for my liking."

"But isn't that why we came here?" asked Ty Lee.

They had come here to capture the Avatar, but that was a moot point. "Ty Lee, how many times are you going to ask me about the coup?" asked Azula. "I've tried to dozens of times and it never sticks. If there is a way out of this, the coup isn't it."

"What do you mean?" asked Ty Lee.

Azula looked back to her friend. She took a breathe and decided to come clean. "Alright, I suppose I haven't explained it to you in full before now. I successfully overthrew Ba Sing Se, got Zuko to defect, and killed the Avatar. Then I woke up the previous morning and had to do it all over again.

"I've been reliving the same day over and over again."

"Wow, that sounds interesting." said Ty Lee, not sounding very put off. "So that's why you've been acting so weird."

Did she believe her that easily? Ty Lee really wasn't that gullible. Even if Azula was telling the truth, her story was unlikely. "Weird? I am not acting weird! I am improving myself! And my means of enforcing my will on this universe!"

Stares were attracted. Azula settled down. "Why do you believe me so easily anyway?"

"Well you've been acting a lot nicer." said Ty Lee. "And your aura has completely changed from yesterday. So you would have had to go through some huge changes."

"Yes." said Azula. "That is part of the improvement. I've come to realize that… positive reinforcement can be a useful tool."

"That's great, Azula." said Ty Lee, sipping her tea.

Azula remained silent. So did Ty Lee. "…Ty Lee."

"Yes?" asked Ty Lee.

"Out of curiosity, if you ended up in a loop like this what would you do?" asked Azula.

"Well, there wouldn't be any consequences so-" began Ty Lee.

"I'm past that stage." said Azula.

Ty Lee became thoughtful. "I suppose I could try and create the perfect day."

Azula stared at her incredulously. Had she even been listening? That was one of her only jobs! "Didn't you hear me? I already did that. I conquered Ba Sing Se, killed the Avatar, got Zuko to defect and completely won. I even heard the lamentations of that damn water peasant."

"Okay, but that might be perfect for you." said Ty Lee. "But it was probably a pretty bad day for everyone else."

Azula blinked. How could something that was good for her be bad? She was a Princess of the Fire Nation. She defined good and evil. "What do you mean? The Fire Nation is spreading its greatness to enlighten these miserable peasants."

"Well yes." admitted Ty Lee. She looked a bit awkward, going on. "But they probably don't know that. So if the Fire Nation military were to walk in, they'd probably be pretty upset."

It was like the dawn had broken over a long night. Azula arose in triumph. "That's it!"

"What?" said Ty Lee.

"That's why my plans to conquer Ba Sing Se never succeeded!" said Azula. "I may have conquered Ba Sing Se, but the masses remained ignorant of my greatness! Those miserable Earth Kingdom types would have claimed it was a hostile takeover!"

"Wasn't it a hostile takeover?" asked Ty Lee.

"Details!" said Azula, a smirk of triumph playing across her face. "Now I know why the loops have failed!

"I'll find every major and minor problem in Ba Sing Se! I'll fix all of them even as I overthrow the legitimate government for the betterment of the Earth Kingdom!

"I will tear down the walls of Ba Sing Se, and the people will cheer!"

Dead silence. Azula became aware of a great many people staring. Azula's smirk of triumph lessened as she looked around awkwardly. She going to prison again, wasn't she?

"…Um, Azula, we're in public." said Ty Lee.

"….Oh." said Azula.

At that moment Zuko leaped in front of her. Her raised his hands in a gesture of peace. "We're sorry about this. Um, this girl here has some issues. You see she suffered some severe trauma while watching a Fire Nation play about the Dragon of the West.

"After she got back to her village her family was um... dead.

"It messed up her head."

There were some murmurs of sympathy. Did they honestly believe that? These people were dumber than Azula had thought. Still, she had to play along.

"…Right, yes… um… thank you Lee. I… um… forgot my medicine." said Azula.

Ty Lee stood up. "I'll escort her back."

"Thank you." whispered Azula.

"Just go." said Zuko.

As they made their way out, Azula sighed. "That was close."

"It's a good thing Zuko bailed you out." said Ty Lee.

And then they came face to face with Katara. The water peasant blinked in surprise. "Azula?!"

* * *

The prison door slammed shut. Azula sighed. "Typical."

"Well, there's always next time." said Ty Lee hopefully.

"Shush." said Azula.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

So yeah, Bear Day has taken a somewhat nonstandard path with the character arc. Usually, the character starts out as a complete jerk and uses the loop for selfish gain. Then they despair. Then they go to self-improvement. Finally, they get out by trying to make the perfect day.

Azula seems to be zigzagging all over the place here.


	14. Not So Basic Decency

**Warning:**

**This chapter is not as extreme as the previous chapter with a warning. Even so, the warnings from before apply. There are some disturbing elements and people with triggers should avoid it.**

* * *

**Chapter Fourteen: Not so Basic Decency**

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. She got up quickly that morning after a loop of scouting out her target. During this time she'd come to realize that Katara slept late.

So Azula dressed quickly, combed her hair, and slipped out past Mai and Ty Lee. She got the rope and headed out. She made the proper arrangements via letter. She'd had to work really hard to get the timing right on this, but it would be worth it.

At last, Azula made her way to Katara's bedroom.

Then she waited.

Right on time, the door opened, and Katara walked out. Azula struck her with precision, knocking her out. As Katara fell, Azula caught her and began to tie her up. She did not, technically, have to do this. Azula could easily determine for herself what she would fix first. Or she could just ask the average person in Ba Sing Se their opinion.

But Azula was also aware that Uncle would applaud the idea of improving the lot of Ba Sing Se's people. So she was going to go about it in a way which caused lots to pain to Katara, just to spite him. Even if he would never know.

Plus, Katara was her enemy. So it was okay to hurt her.

Finishing the ties, Azula slipped out of the palace and to the chamber which she'd set up ahead of time. It was all there, just like she'd planned.

Now for the fun part.

* * *

Katara awoke.

Her bed felt a bit different. It was still silk, but the mattress seemed a bit less soft. She struggled and found her arms trapped on either side. Her eyes fluttered open, and she realized she was not in her bedroom in Ba Sing Se. The walls here were of stone like someone had earthbended it.

She struggled to try and get free and found her legs were also trapped. She was forced into a spread eagle position, and she was in nothing but lacey white underwear.

"What the..." began Katara. "What the heck is going on?"

She looked for some water. If she could find a way to bend it... no, her arms were trapped. And then she saw a figure in the shadows. "You, who are you?!"

Princess Azula emerged from the shadows, smiling. She was wearing nothing more than a red robe which displayed an ample amount of cleavage. "Hello, Katara."

"Azula! Let me go!" said Katara.

"Hmm, let me think about this." said Azula as she kneeled on the bed and crawled over her so their faces were close. "I don't think so."

"What am I doing here?" asked Katara. "What do you want?!"

"Oh, well, I've done this before of course." said Azula. "But I've been trying to be more considerate, so I provided a bed for you."

"When I get out-" began Katara.

Then Azula put a hand to Katara's stomach. Katara felt a sudden shock through her body. She let out a yell of pain, and Azula cupped her face. The Princess licked her lips. "You know, it's funny. When I lost interest in this kind of thing I thought it was for good. It turns out all I needed was some questions to ask.

"Now, I want you to tell me about some of the problems in Ba Sing Se."

"I'm not telling you anything." said Katara.

"I'm glad you said that, Katara." said Azula. "I really am."

There was another shock. Katara shuddered and gritted her teeth. She felt electricity surged through her nerves. Azula began to rub her down, sending steady streams into her. Her hands rubbed on Katara's thighs now.

"Let go of me!" said Katara. "Get off!" She kicked and thrashed, but that only seemed to make Azula enjoy it more. "This is sick!"

"I'm a Princess of the Fire Nation." said Azula. "I determine good and evil. And I am trying to be more considerate about this. I could be cruel if you want, but are you really sure you want me to torture you?"

Katara went silent. Was she serious? Of course, she was. Katara had seen her lightning. And something told her that this was not the worst thing Azula could do for her. "No... No, I don't."

"Good." said Azula. "I'm working on a new technique. Channeling very small amounts of lightning. Much as I love burning you all over, I'm going for a 'less is more' approach with this.

"Now why don't we get down to business.

"What are some of the problems in Ba Sing Se?"

Katara stared. Why did Azula want to know about problems in Ba Sing Se. She could think of all kinds. But she wasn't telling her anything. "Go to hell."

Azula smiled.

Katara then felt another shock, this one larger and focused directly into her stomach. She shuddered, letting out a groan. Azula then gripped her chin and brought it up. "It really doesn't have to be this way, you know. All you have to do is tell me about some of the problems Ba Sing Se has. You've been here for weeks."

"Why should you care?" hissed Katara.

Azula slapped her across the face with one hand. "Good question, but I'm the one doing the interrogation.

"Still, in light of our history, I'll tell you. I'm planning a takeover of Ba Sing Se. Actually, I've already done it. I could do it in my sleep. But I need to also address some of the underlying problems.

"I want the people of the Earth Kingdom to regard me as an improvement."

"Like they ever will! The Fire Nation does nothing but destroy people's lives!" said Katara.

Azula sighed and sat up on her knees so she was straddling Katara. "...See, this is why you don't let the prisoners ask questions."

And then she leaned in and kissed Katara. Katara struggled as she felt Azula's tongue entering her mouth. At the same time lightning surged into her, even as Azula's hands ran over Katara's breasts. Azula was playing her like an instrument. She drove Katara mad with her hands, stimulating her body with her abilities.

Katara struggled to throw her off, trying not to enjoy this. What was this? How was Azula doing this?

Finally, Azula broke the kiss and licked Katara's face. "You know I enjoy this, don't you Katara. I've already decided I'm going to be nicer to the everyday people. But I also really enjoy torturing people. You make an excellent outlet for my frustration.

"I'm perfectly willing to sit here blasting you with lightning all day long. I can always try again tomorrow."

Her first kiss had been taken by this horrible princess. Or had it? Of course, it had. Katara spat in her face. "Bite me."

Azula's eyes narrowed, and she pulled back. "I may do a bit of that later as well. Now answer the question!"

Then she put two fingers to Katara's stomach. There was a sharp, agonizing pain and Katara screamed. As she struggled, she realized that Azula had only been toying with her. She could...

She could keep making it worse again and again unless Katara told her something. And something told Katara that no one would find this place. "Try the Dai Li!" she screamed.

Azula stopped. "Yes, the secret police. What about them?"

"They uh... they brainwashed a lot of innocent women." said Katara. "They turned them into automatons who all call themselves Joo Dee."

Azula put a hand to her chin thoughtfully. "I remember seeing one or two of them around." She lowered two fingers and shocked Katara again.

The bolt was less powerful, but Katara still squirmed. "Arg! Stop it! I told you!"

"And now I want more answers." said Azula. "How would you fix this problem?"

"Can't you figure it out for yourself, Ms. Perfect?" snapped Katara.

"I'm what you might call a novice when it comes to helping other people. I'm not much of a people person either. Empathy doesn't come easily to me. Back when Zuzu got his scar, I found it hilarious.

"Of course then he was exiled." Her eyes went distant. "After that, the group broke up. Still, no use crying over spilled milk. Now answer the question."

Katara tried to think of a solution. She'd just tried not to think about the Joo Dee's until now, and now she was drawing a blank. Why had she just-

Azula shocked her.

"I don't know!" said Katara.

"Not good enough, I'm afraid." said Azula. "Do give it some thought. I like my interrogations when my victim is trying to come up with an answer."

"Fine, fine uh... Jet!" said Katara.

Azula paused. "What about him?" How did she know who Jet was?

"Jet got brainwashed by the Dai Li, but Aang..." began Katara.

"What about the Avatar?" asked Azula sharply.

"Aang managed to break through to him!" Azula shocked her again, very lightly. "Ah! Maybe... maybe someone could get through to them if they could... talk to them..."

Azula sighed. "That really is the best you've got, isn't it?

"Wonderul. Therapy.

"I suppose I could add it to my list of improvements, just below 'gender equality' and just above 'caring for the poor.'

"Now, I suppose I could ask some more questions. But I think I'll take the rest of the loop off."

Katara saw where this was going. But she was helpless to do anything as Azula shed her robe to reveal naked skin beneath. Azula leaned in and began to remove her clothes.

"Hey, let go of me!" cried Katara. "Let go!"

Azula was taking her time with this. "Why should I? We won't be disturbed for the rest of the day."

Katara began to panic. Her first time couldn't happen like this! It couldn't! "Let go! Let me go!"

"Struggle if you want. It only makes things better for me." said Azula.

"You... you're sick!" said Katara.

By now she was stark naked. Azula paused, hesitating for a moment.

"Here's the thing." said Azula. "Some loops ago I would have gotten right to it. I enjoy causing others pain you see, Katara, especially ones' who inconvenience me."

"I'm begging you!" said Katara. "Please don't do this to me! Please!"

Azula paused. For a moment Katara saw something akin to confliction in her expression. "You know, you have inconvenienced me more than any other. But really, pain is just one kind of domination. I suppose since you've got it in you to beg for mercy, I ought to be merciful." She reached into her robe and drew out a cloth, wetting it with a vial of liquid. "I'm going to send you into a sleep.

"And by the time I finish, today never will have happened."

The wet cloth was forced to Katara's mouth. She breathed in before she could stop herself. Soon she found her vision going dark as she drifted off.

The last thing she saw was Azula smiling.

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. She stood up and wondered why'd she'd decided to drug that Katara girl first. It wasn't as if Katara's suffering meant anything to her, and it wouldn't have any long term effects. Still, mercy in exchange for begging and pleading did seem a good policy. More people were likely to beg if they got something out of it.

Maybe there was more to this whole not ruling through fear thing than she thought.

Still, some part of her wanted Katara to submit. To not need chains, but willingly give herself to Azula. Totally and completely. Azula could probably manage it in time. But how was she supposed to do all that in twenty-four hours?

Azula could just brainwash her. But that would seem like cheating somehow. She wanted to get inside Katara's head and make her hers without actually changing who Katara was. To attach strings to her as she'd done to Ty Lee and Mai.

The idea thrilled her.

But first, she had to reprogram all the Joo Dees.

As she walked to the door, Azula reflected that this was going to be very boring work up ahead. Very repetitive.

"Azula, you're awake. You've got to try this breakfast." said Ty Lee. "They have the best sausages."

Right after this.

Wait, when had Azula started thinking of her as Katara?

* * *

**Author's Note:**

So I there is a sick sort of symbolism to Azula's tormenting of Katara. The first time she tortured Katara, she went out of her way to hurt her. She caused her as much suffering as possible and then had her way with her. This time she was far more restrained and ended up just sending her into a day-long sleep after she was done.

Thus symbolizing Azula's growth from a vicious sociopath to, um, not so basic decency.

Azula's character development does seem to be advancing at a glacial rate. It helps that Azula is fighting it the whole way. She is a very spiteful person and is aware that Iroh is affecting her. So she's going about being 'good' in the worst way she can.


	15. Information Gathering

**Warning:**

**Some torture of a deeply unpleasant and villainous individual in this chapter. Nothing sexual, though. Just skip one section down as soon as you see the words 'Long Feng.'**

* * *

**Chapter Fifteen: Information Gathering**

Azula couldn't believe her ears.

When she'd first met the Dai Li they'd given off the impression of being disciplined. Ruthless. Deadly efficient. So how was it possible they had such an oversight?

"So you mean to tell me you haven't documented the identities of the Joo Dee's?" asked Azula.

"Of course not." said the officer. "Why would we keep it? Their sentence is indefinite."

Azula sighed. "Do you have anything on them?"

The man shrugged. "Well, there are prison logs. But there hasn't been much of an attempt to keep track of them all."

"Fine, fine, bring me all the data you have." said Azula.

Thirty minutes later Azula was looking at all the data they had. It was a book. A book with a lot of names in it. No details beyond the date of acquisition and crime committed. She looked up at the operative with narrowed eyes.

"A list of names?" asked Azula.

"Yes." said the man. "These are all the Joo Dees who we have."

Azula sighed. "I see. Well, thank you very much.

"Now I want a list of all the methods used to create the Joo Dees. As quickly as possible."

The man nodded and left.

Azula began to read. It was boring. One name after another flowed through her mind. One woman was grabbed for stealing an apple. Others were taken without a given reason. Still, others had crimes like robbery and mugging.

They all blurred together into an indistinguishable mass. It was all Azula could do not to fall asleep. Finally, as she caught herself nodded, she sighed. "This is going to take forever, isn't it? How am I supposed to find out who all these women are and how to reform them from just this?

"I mean, I suppose I could try to learn more about what the Avatar did to free Jet. But I don't want torture with Katara to get boring.

"What to do?" She paused. "Well, I suppose I could do some in the field research."

The Dai Li had a lot of information about people they might want to arrest. But they didn't have any concern for them once they had been arrested. Typical. Just typical.

And that was how Azula found her way back to the Jasmine Dragon. There was Zuko, as usual. He smiled as he approached. "Welcome to the Jasmine Dragon, how can I-" His smile didn't wholly fade this time. And he didn't say her name in shock.

Was it possible people had a subconscious memory of her? Azula hadn't even known about the concept of subconsciousness before now. Either way, this silence was awkward. "Hello, Lee. I'm just here for some tea." Then her gaze fell on Jin, serving a tray of dishes. She approached her. "Excuse me, Jin, can I talk with you?"

Jin looked up in surprise. She seemed to be trying to remember if she knew Azula. "Um..." She looked to Uncle, who waved.

"Go ahead." said Iroh. "Just don't take too long. There is tea to serve."

"Yes, of course." said Jin. They sat down across from one another. "How can I help?"

Azula clasped her hands and thought about how best to say it. "Well you see, I was walking through the city, and I keep running into girls named Joo Dee. They all seem to have the same personality. I haven't been here long, but I was hoping you could tell me a bit about them."

"I..." Jin looked afraid. Why was she afraid. "I really shouldn't."

"Trust me." said Azula. "You don't need to be afraid."

Jin looked her in the eye and Azula did her best to look innocent. She hadn't had this expression in years. Finally, Jin looked back down. "Alright. The Joo Dees they... I've seen some of them before. They're women who got caught stealing in the lower districts. Or some just disappeared. They were taken by the Dai Li.

"Sometimes we see them again but...

"But they don't remember anything. The Dai Li use them as accountants and greeters for important guests."

Her voice was terrified. Several people looked over to where the conversation was. They finished their tea and walked out. People were scared of the Dai Li. Why did that bother, Azula?

Stay on task. "Have any of them met family? Friends?"

Jin looked away. "I... a friend of mine was taken as one. I met her again and... and for a moment it seemed like she was herself. But then one of her guards, they always have guards when going to the Lower Districts, he said something."

"Said what." said Azula.

Jin was shaking at the memory. Azula put a hand to her shoulder. "It's all right." said Azula. "No one is going to hurt you, Jin. Not on my watch."

Jin looked up. "'You are invited to Lake Laogai.' I don't know what it means, but her face went blank, and she just left. I never saw her again. I think they changed her route."

"I see." said Azula. "I'm sorry to hear about your troubles Jin. I can promise you, the ones' responsible will regret it, and, sooner or later, a solution will present itself."

She stood up and excused herself.

As Azula left, she began to realize that she was clenching her hands. She was angry. Very angry. Jin belonged to her. As the entire city would belong to her. And the Dai Li had hurt, no, damaged her.

Long Feng had damaged Azula's property. And he would pay for it.

It wasn't anything personal.

She didn't care about Jin as a person. Definitely not.

* * *

Long Feng awoke from a sleep he did not remember taken. One moment he had been awaiting news of the coup and then someone had entered his cell. Before he could reacted, he'd been rendered unconscious.

And now he was in the Dai Li interrogation room. The one used for torture. Long Feng had had it retired in favor of hypnosis, but now the equipment was here. Polished and read.

"What is this..." said Long Feng.

Out of the shadows emerged Princess Azula, holding two nails. Her expression was nothing like the out of her depth girl she'd seemed before. It was murderous. "Hello, Long Feng."

He tried to break his bonds. "Princess Azula, what is the meaning of this?"

And then Azula stabbed the nails into his legs. Long Feng caught the yell of pain before it came out. She attached two chains to the nails. There was a flash of lightning, and he screamed. "Oh nothing in particular." said Azula. "The Dai Li have been dissolved. Quite literally actually. And I've arranged things so we will not be interrupted."

"What are you talking about-" began Long Feng. Then there was another surge.

"You want to hear something funny." said Azula. "I spent days looking through guarded Dai Li files on the Joo Dees, trying to memorize it all, and it was so boring and dry. I've never been very good at book learning.

"I considered going and tormenting the water peasant again, to relieve the monotony. But then I had an idea:

"Why not mix business with pleasure?

"Instead of reading up on Dai Li methods and secrets, I'll just torture you to death again, and again until I know them all. And since I'll be having a lot of fun, it'll be much easier to remember."

Then she drew out a knife. Long Feng tried to struggle as she gripped his hand. He tried to keep his fingers clenched, but she pulled out ring finger and set the knife to it.

"You don't really think the Dai Li-" began Long Feng.

Then she made a small cut. He shuddered as she drew out the knife and set it to his cheek, sinking it in. Long Feng kept himself controlled and focused on trying to break free. He would not give her the satisfaction of crying out.

"I thought I'd start with death by a thousand cuts." said Azula as she began to cut. "Interesting fact, by the way, I usually go easy on certain kinds of people. I mean when tormenting that water peasant, all I did was sear her a little. Drive her little by little to the edge. A bit of lightning, followed by a bit of fun. She wouldn't suffer any permanent harm, physically anyway.

"But for someone like you?

"Well, I can do things. All kinds of horrible maiming, vicious things. things that I'd never consider doing on some stupid little do-gooder.

"Let's get started!"

Her smile scared Long Feng. He decided it might be better to give her the information right away. "That will not be necessary. I'll tell you everything."

"I know." said Azula. "But I like my way better."

* * *

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face.

Long Feng's screams had lasted well into the night across many different loops. Azula had set to work extracting all the information she could from him. She'd checked it with other sources of course. When she had gathered all she could from him, she started working her way down the Dai Li's chain of command.

She sat up and began to get ready.

It had been fun torturing people. She'd always held back with Katara, but against the Dai Li? They well and truly deserved it, and that meant she could really get creative. Even so, there were only so many times one could torture someone for information before it got old.

She needed a break.

More importantly, she needed an outside perspective. Azula had information. But she had no idea what to do with it all. Katara had mentioned getting through to Jet

"Azula, you're awake. You've got to try this breakfast." said Ty Lee. "They have the best sausages."

Azula served herself and began to eat quickly. "I would, Ty Lee, but I've got a problem. You see I've got all the data I need. But I need a certain someone's expertise in making use of it.

"Any advice?"

"Well you could ask for their help." said Ty Lee.

"Unfortunately if I revealed myself to them they'd either attack me or get me thrown in prison." said Azula. "Again. They know us by sight."

"The water peasant?" guessed Mai.

"Yes." said Azula.

"Have you considered threatening to murder their loved ones' if they don't obey you?" asked Mai.

Azula sighed despondently. "No, her loved ones' aren't in the city at the moment. And by the time they get here, it'll be too late."

"You could threaten innocent civilians." said Mai.

Azula blinked and looked at Mai in surprise. "...That is an absolutely brilliant suggestions Mai, where did you get it?!"

"You've been doing it to us all our lives." said Mai.

Oh, that was a foolish question. "Oh, so I have." Azula stood up. "Well, no sense in wasting any more time."

She didn't have to do any prep work. Katara and her friends were gullible enough to not need it. This would be easy.

Azula strode through the halls and found Katara's room. Standing by it, she waited until Katara entered the hall. She saw Azula, and instantly her face became terrified. She stepped back in uncharacteristic fear and snatched for her waterskin. But as she drew out her water, the process was uneasy and weak.

"Azula!" said Katara, backing away. Her hands were shaking.

Yes, there was definitely a subconscious effect on people. "I have taken fifty-seven innocent people hostage." said Azula. "If my cover is blown or if I give the order they will be boiled alive."

Katara steadied herself. "You... you don't have any shame do you?"

"Maybe not. The question is: Do you?" asked Azula, stepping forward. "You have only one chance, and only one chance to save them."

"What do you want?" asked Katara.

"You must go on a date with me to the Jasmine Dragon." said Azula. Why put it like that? Why not? It would screw with her.

"What?" said Katara, freezing in shock. Her water splashed to the ground.

Azula smiled. "Wear something nice."

* * *

**Author's Note:**

You know, I'm getting really sick of writing torture scenes with Azula. I know it's part of her character, and this is part of her arc. But it's unpleasant to write, and it means I have to put on content warnings.

I really wanted that first chapter to just be one moment. But I have to go where Azula's character leads me. And it made perfect sense that the best way to learn about Dai Li secrets would be to interrogate the Dai Li.


	16. Azula's Hot Date

**Chapter Sixteen: Azula's Hot Date**

Azula waited outside the door.

She wondered what Katara would end up wearing. She was actually looking forward to it for once. Even so, she was taking some time. "Are you quite ready? Keep in mind that I've already accounted for any escape plans you might have."

"Yes, damn you! I'm ready!" said Katara on the other side.

The door opened and Katara emerged. She was wearing a green silken dress that clung to the brown-skinned girls frame. Azula admired her. "Very nice. Where did you get it?"

"The tailors had it made for me." said Katara. "I didn't ask for it."

She sounded like she was afraid, but trying to sound angry. It amused Azula. "Why don't we get going."

And they began to walk. As they did, Katara eyed her, looking like she wanted to make a run for it. She obviously was terrified because of the previous loops. "What are you up to? Why are you doing this?"

"Apart from the desire to see you squirm?" asked Azula. "There are things I'd like to talk to you about. I thought this might be a good way to do it."

They made their way through the palace and out. Then into some of the better districts.

Azula wasn't sure what had made her pick the Jasmine Dragon. Technically it was a serious risk. But then, the look on Katara's face would be worth it.

"Where is this?" asked Katara as they walked.

"The Jasmine Dragon. A recent tea shop." said Azula as they entered. "The finest tea in Ba Sing Se. You may see someone you know." Then she waved to Zuko as she walked forward. "Table for two, please?"

Zuko stopped straight. "Azula?"

"Zuko?!" said Katara.

"Katara!" cried Azula in mock surprise. "This is fun isn't it, Lee? Screaming our names at each other? Table for two, Zuzu."

"But... what are you..." began Zuko.

"Dating Katara, obviously." said Azula.

"But I mean..." began Zuko.

"Table for two." repeated Azula.

As they were seated Azula reflected that the disturbance had been well worth it. Very entertaining. Katara, however, was getting over her fright and becoming angry. "Alright what are you playing at? What is Zuko doing here?"

"His name is Lee and he works at a tea shop." said Azula with exaggerated innocence. "What do you think he is doing."

"Oh right." scoffed Katara. "And I suppose the entire Fire Nation Royal Family is just hanging out in a tea shop for no reason?"

"Fire Nation Royal Family?" asked Azula. "Whatever do you mean?"

"Stop it!" snapped Katara.

They attracted a number of stares. Azula smiled. "Do you want to make a scene Katara? I might have to give the signal." Not that she had a signal.

Katara remained silent. "...No, I don't."

"Good." said Azula.

And at that point, Jin approached with two menus. She handed them to Azula, who handed one to Katara. "Um, excuse me. I'm Jin, your server. Can I take your order?"

"Jin, I'll have the special today." said Azula, looking over the menu.

JIn nodded and smiled. Then she looked at Katara. "And you?"

"Um, I'm not really sure." said Katara, looking over it.

"Try the White Dragon Tea, Katara. It's excellent." said Azula.

Katara looked at her menu and pointed to something. "I'll have this."

Jin nodded and looked to Azula, smile widening. "Thank you."

Then she went off. Katara continued to look on in suspicion. "What do you want, Azula?"

Azula decided to cut to the chase. "Oh very well, I suppose I might as well get down to the basics. I'm told by various circumstances that you had a friend named Jet."

Katara went still. "Jet wasn't my friend."

"Well, no matter. Tell me about him." said Azula.

Katara remained silent for a long moment. "...Aang, Sokka and me met him when we were on our way to the Northern Water Tribe. I wanted to learn waterbending, and so did Aang. He helped us against the Fire Nation."

"Mmmhmm, he sounds like the sort of person you'd like." said Azula. "After all, the Firenation is truly evil with its gender equality. and our roads, wine, tea, and generally superior civilization."

"He tricked us!" snapped Katara. "He used Aang and me to start a flood that nearly wiped out an entire village!"

Azula sighed. "I wasn't aware you cared about big bad Fire Nation people."

"They weren't Fire Nation." said Katara. "They were Earth Kingdom people. Jet wanted to wipe out the troops stationed there."

"Hmm, sounds like a fair trade." said Azula. "Given how badly the Earth King runs this nation ending their lives would probably be a mercy. And it would destroy his enemies."

"It figures you'd say that." snapped Katara. "Whatever. We stopped him and left."

"And then?" asked Azula, leaning forward.

"I didn't see him again until we ran into him in Ba Sing Se." said Katara. "He'd been brainwashed by the Dai Li, but we tracked them down. We went to a place called Lake Laogai. But when we went there Long Feng, the head of the Dai Li, caught Aang and Jet together.

"I don't know what happened. Aang-"

"The Avatar?" asked Azula, knowing full well the answer.

"Yes, Aang said that Long Feng said something." said Katara. " 'You are invited to Lake Laogai.'

"Then Jet went nuts and attacked Aang."

"And?" asked Azula.

"Aang talked him down, but when he attacked Long Feng, he was killed. I tried to save him but..." Katara halted. "Why do you care about this?"

Azula leaned back in her seat and shrugged. "Alright, I confess. Once I conquer Ba Sing Se, I mean to rehabilitate the Joo Dees. Since you managed to bypass Jet's programming, I thought I might ask."

"I don't know what Aang said." said Katara, looking away. "He just... he said he told Jet he was his friend."

"Wonderful." said Azula. "That's a real help. 'The power of friendship.'"

At that moment Jin came back with a tray, setting down the tea in front of them.

"Excuse me, I've got your tea." said Jin

Azula looked up and smiled. "Thank you, Jin." She sipped the tea. "Excellent as always."

Jin paused. "Um, have we met?"

"Oh, you wouldn't remember. Don't mind me." said Azula.

Katara looked at Azula in surprise. "I'm surprised you're treating someone decently."

"I like Jin. I have plans for her once I'm done here." said Azula. "So, if you wanted to reverse the brainwashing hundreds of Joo Dees, how would you go about it?"

"Why do you care?" asked Katara.

"I told you." said Azula.

"I don't believe you! You're-" began Katara, before lowering her voice. "You're a terrible person. You've chased us all across the world, trying to capture the Avatar."

"Oh yes, because clearly just because I'm your enemy it automatically makes me a puppy kicking monster." said Azula. "One who burns turtle ducks and delights in the torments of her enemies."

"Are you saying you aren't?" scoffed Katara.

"No, you're right of course. But I'm still offended." said Azula. "You like to think you understand the world, don't you? Just because you've flown around on a bison having everything handed to you by people. Just because you happened to be traveling with the Avatar."

"Shut up!" snapped Katara as she stood. Then she noticed people staring. "Erm... sorry, we uh..."

"Is something wrong?" asked Mushi.

"No, of course not. We just had a bit of a disagreement." said Katara. She sat down again and leaned in. "You have no idea what this war, what your nation has done to me. It killed my mother."

Azula looked into her tea and ran her forefinger around the rim of her cup. "Oh, how tragic. You're making me tearbend."

"You really are a soulless bitch, you know that." hissed Katara.

Azula chuckled. "Do you know how Zuzu got that scar?"

"No, and I don't care." said Katara, crossing her arms.

"Wonderful." said Azula. "I could have said the same to your little angsting session, so you're listening to mine. Zuko went to a war meeting with uncle. He objected to sending a bunch of peasant soldiers to their death.

"So Father challenged him to an Agni Kai. A duel. Zuzu refused to fight him. So Father burned half his face off."

Katara stared. "...His own Father."

"Mmmhmm." said Azula. "All this after our cousin Lu Ten was killed, and our Mother abandoned us. So you've got a tragic backstory. Join the club." Azula realized she was growing tired of this. "Anyway, you're boring me. Answer the question and you can go."

Katara shifted. "...You might be able to get through to them if you had them meet with their friends and family."

"Fair enough." said Azula, sipping her tea. "You can go."

Katara finished her tea and left. Azula then sipped again. Odd. Once the initial shock value had died down she'd lost interest. What was it about Katara that interested Azula? She decided it was the challenge.

Katara hadn't been a challenge this time. She was too scared from her subconscious response. But Azula hadn't lost interest in Katara. But why? She already knew her miserable backstory. She'd already had her way with her.

And why had she been offended by Katara's usual speech? Why bring up what happened to Zuzu? Had Azula wanted Katara to understand her better?

Questions for later.

Azula finished her tea. Then she stood up from her seat and made her way over to Uncle. "Hmm, this truly is the finest tea in the city. My compliments Mushi, your reputation is not unfounded."

"Oh, you're too kind." said Uncle, eyeing her in surprise.

"Oh yes, when I return to the palace I intend to recommend you to the Earth King personally." said Azula.

"You are staying in the palace?" asked Uncle.

"Oh yes." said Azula. "I'm sure I can arrange for you to serve tea to the Earth King tomorrow if you want it."

"Well, if you can arrange that I'd be a very happy man." said Uncle, seeming a bit incredulous.

"Uncle, what if she-" began Zuko.

Azula put a finger to Zuzu's lips. "Oh don't worry. She'll spend the rest of the day in prison. The Dai Li don't like people disturbing the peace." She led Zuzu to the door.

Katara was making her way into the distance. And then she was grabbed and pulled into the alley by the Dai Li. Zuzu looked at her in surprise. His eyes narrowed. "How did you arrange this?"

Azula shrugged. "Does it really matter? Anyway, don't you want to serve tea to the Earth King?"

"Of course." said Zuko. "But-"

"Excellent." said Azula. "I'll have another cup of tea."

"Coming right up." said Uncle.

Azula sipped her second cup of tea. And she reflected that her obsession with Jin, Zuzu, and Uncle was very different from that of Katara. All of them were her playthings. But Azula realized she wanted Jin, Zuko, and Uncle to be happy. She wanted them to benefit from knowing her as much as she did from them.

That was really why she was here.

Katara was...

She didn't really know. Either way, she had to finish her tea.

As she did, she admitted to herself that she was going to have to put a lot of work into this. Maybe she should multitask between loops.

She looked up to Jin. "Excuse me, Jin. I was wondering if you could tell me about the problems facing Ba Sing Se."

No sense in not learning about some of the more down to earth problems in Ba Sing Se.

As it turned out, there were a lot of them.

* * *

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face.

She arose and immediately walked out to meet Ty Lee and Mai. "No time for breakfast, girls. We've got some tax records to run through."


	17. Good Deeds

**Chapter Seventeen: Good Deeds**

Earlier the same day {though it was always the same day} Azula kneeled before the Earth King, head bowed. How many times would she have to do this before she won? Quite a few. She had the feeling that if she just accomplished the perfect conquest, it would somehow end perfectly.

After all, some power must have subjected her to this loop for some reason. If it wanted the Fire Nation to fail then surely, they would have picked the Avatar or Katara or something. Since Azula was chosen, it must want her to win.

"Your Majesty, I have a report for you." said Azula.

And she offered a scroll.

The Earth King came forward and unrolled it. His eyes scanned over it carefully. Eventually, he lowered it and looked at her. "What is this?"

"It is a complete chronicle of corruption within the city of Ba Sing Se." said Azula. "I've had the Dai Li investigate the matter fully. We have reason to believe that everyone on this list has been taking bribes."

She'd spent several loops developing the list and memorizing it. When she conquered this city she wanted it to be run efficiently. The Earth King looked horrified. "This is a very extensive list."

"To be honest, I suspect that Long Feng allowed it." said Azula. "He had massive amounts of evidence on many of these people, dating back years. And as long as he had it, he could easily ask them for favors."

The Earth King nodded. "This is excellent work. I'll set my agents to work getting these people to account for their actions."

"Thank you, your majesty." said Azula. Then she stood. "Oh and here is a list of agents who can't be trusted. I have the Dai Li investigating them as we speak.

"Now if you don't mind, I'd like to get the services of a particular servant. One of the ones' going by the name of Joo Dee."

"There are a great many of them." said the Earth King. "Did you have a specific one in mind?"

"Yes." said Azula. "Unfortunately I don't know what she looks like. So I'm going to need someone to identify her."

The Earth King looked at her in surprise. "Who?"

Agni above this fool was easily manipulated.

* * *

Once again Azula talked her way past Zuko. This time she was dressed in the garb of the Dai Li. Finding Jin she approached her. The girl put the tea, and then looked up.

She shuddered as Azula reached her.

"Excuse me, are you Jin?" asked Azula.

"Yes, how can I help you." said Jin.

"My name if Azula. I'm from the Earth King." said Azula. "My records indicate that a friend of yours was taken by the Dai Li some time ago. Is this true?"

Jin nodded. "Yes, her name was Sen. Why do you ask?"

Why was everyone afraid of her? Was it the outfit. Quite possibly. Or perhaps it was because she was all business at the moment. "There has been a change of governance recently. We're looking into the possibility of rehabilitating some of the Joo Dees. Our hope is that if we can get them in contact with people they know, that we might be able to get through to them.

"We also need to know their personal details to treat each one.

"I was hoping you could come with me and help me find your friend."

Jin looked around. "Me? But why just me?"

"I'm planning a larger program later." said Azula. "But it won't do any good if being in contact with people they know doesn't help.

"You just got lucky. Or unlucky, as it turns out."

"Alright." said Jin, nodding. Then she made her way over to Uncle. "Mushi I... I'm being called to the Earth King's palace. Can I have the day off?"

Uncle eyed Azula suspiciously. "Of course. But is there something we should know?"

"Let me speak with her, Uncle." said Zuko.

To Azula's surprise, Zuko took her outside instead of Jin. He glared at her seriously. "What are you doing Azula? Why do you want Jin?"

Azula did her best to look innocent. "Would you believe I'm telling the truth?"

"No." said Zuko. "You always lie."

"But you believe me anyway." noted Azula.

Zuko shifted. "...If you hurt her-" he began.

"Yes, yes, I'll suffer a thousand deaths and all that." said Azula. "You don't exactly have the resources to pull anything, though, do you?"

"Don't underestimate me, Azula." said Zuko.

"Fine." said Azula, before looking to the door. "Jin, are you ready to go."

Jin nodded. "Of course."

"Good." said Azula.

* * *

Hundreds of the Joo Dees were standing to attention in a large, nondescript room. Jin walked alongside Azula, looking nervous. Azula liked the look it gave her.

"These are all the Joo Dees I could call back on short notice." said Azula. "Tell me any you recognize. Take your time."

"There are so many..." said Jin, clenching her fist.

"Long Feng is a very sick person." said Azula.

Jin walked on and stopped suddenly as she saw a woman. She was a short woman, with plump cheeks. Was this Sen. "I... I remember her. I saw her being arrested for stealing an apple."

"Do you know her name?" asked Azula.

Jin remained silent for a long moment. "I'm sorry, but no."

"All of them are under instructions to stay still and say nothing." said Azula. "When you find someone you know, talk to them. If they react we'll be able to know they remember."

"Alright, but... it could take me a bit." said Jin.

And take a bit it did. Jin walked down one row after another. As they did, Azula became concerned that she'd have wasted her time. Had Jin forgotten Sen's face?

Then Jin stopped by a woman. She was around Jin's age, with red-brown hair and small eyes. Jin stepped toward her. "Sen? Sen is that you?"

Emotion went into Sen's eyes. She clutched her head and leaned forward. "I... there must be some mistake. My name is Joo Dee. I've been assigned to stand here for inspection.

"I appear to have spoken out of turn. Forgive me..."

"Don't concern yourself with it Joo Dee." said Azula, satisfied. "You and Jin will follow me."

She and Jin began to walk toward the door. All of the Joo Dees began to follow, and Azula halted. She sighed. "...Not you."

"But you instructed-" began Sen.

"I want Sen to go with me." said Azula.

"As I said, my name is Joo Dee." said Sen.

"Okay, fine." said Azula. "I want the Joo Dee whose name used to be Sen to come with me and Jin."

And she began to walk again. However, in addition to Sen, several other Joo Dees walked after her. Azula stopped in irritation. "What are you doing?"

"I... I believe I have a vague recollection of once having that name." said one of them.

"Okay, forget it!" said Azula. "This Joo Dee, and no other one will come with me and Jin. The rest of you... take the day off."

This time it stuck.

Azula led Jin and Sen to a pleasantly colored room and sat them down in comfortable seats. "Okay Jin, I've got some other things to attend to. You are going to talk with Sen here and try to get through to her."

"As I said, my name is Joo Dee-" began Sen.

"No it isn't." said Azula. "From this moment forward you will respond to the name Sen."

Sen shifted nervously. "...This is most irregular."

"That's an order." said Azula. "Now, why don't you two chat and I'll conduct some business."

Then she left.

* * *

In another room entirely, Azula met with Mai and Ty Lee. Both had arrived before she had and were sitting down. Mai eyed her carefully. "So, how did it go?"

"Not all that well." said Azula. "I did note some emotional reaction. But nothing as instant as what was described by Katara- the water peasant. I've left Jin to have a long chat. We'll see what we can find when we're back.

"What about your end?"

"Well, you asked me to come up with a theoretical system of finding friends and family members of the Joo Dees." said Mai. "On short notice, I had the idea of holding events where people could see if they could find people they knew.

"We could then give them back custody.

"The problem is that the system is prone to abuse."

"How so?" asked Azula.

Mai sighed. "Someone could claim to know a Joo Dee, and we'd have no way of proving otherwise. Not without heavy investigation. And given how many Joo Dees there are, that could take months.

"And some of them won't have any attachments."

"Which means we'll need another way to get them out of their brainwashing." guessed Azula. "Fine, find me all the details on the subject. Ty Lee, what about you?"

"Well um... you wanted me to come up with ideas on how to make people accept Fire Nation rule." said Ty Lee. "Well, I thought that we could throw a huge festival with circuses after we win."

Azula smiled. "Bread and circuses? And old policy, but a good one."

"Maybe I could do some performing as well." said Ty Lee.

"Fine." said Azula. "Anything else?"

"Yes." said Ty Lee. "There are a lot of homeless people in Ba Sing Se. A lot of very poor people. Maybe we could do something for them."

Azula blinked. "You want to help the surplus population?"

"It was just a thought." said Ty Lee.

Azula clasped her hands together thoughtfully. "No, actually this is a very good idea. If we do a better job than the Earth King, we'll get their loyalty very quickly.

"Good thinking Ty Lee. I'll handle it tomorrow."

Then suddenly she laughed. Ty Lee and Mai stared.

"What's funny?" asked Ty Lee.

"Oh, I'm sorry. It's an in joke." said Azula. "Anyway, I should check on Jin."

And with that, she stood and walked out.

She made her way back and found Jin and Sen talking together. She couldn't quite make out what they were saying. But Sen looked dazed and conflicted. "Any progress?" she asked.

Sen remained silent. "I... I'm Sen."

"Glad you noticed." said Azula.

"No, I mean. It was like my mind was washed away." said the girl. "But then I talked with Jin and I... I felt like it was all coming back.

"I'm remembering things. Things that were things that used to be. I can't remember it all but...

"Can... can I go home."

Azula found herself smiling. She wasn't sure why. "Of course. Jin, I'll see the two of you off."

* * *

As Jin and Sen made their way back home, the sun was setting. Azula watched them leave the palace, feeling strange. Tomorrow she'd wake up, and everything would be back the way it was before. So why did she feel good about this?

"...Why did you do it?" asked a voice.

Azula glanced back and saw Zuko. He was dressed in black, and his arms were crossed. Two swords were on his back.

"You're going to have to be way more specific." said Azula.

"Help those people. You always have a reason." said Zuko.

"Well I have one or two." admitted Azula. "But to be honest, it just feels good to make someone else's life better for once."

And then the Avatar showed up.

"Azula?!" he saw in shock.

* * *

And back in prison.

Azula sighed. "...When it rains, it pours."

And yet she didn't really mind it all that much. It would probably take more than one day to solve the Joo Dee problem. But she could come up with a proper course of action to deal with it. In the meantime, she could set about solving the problem of poverty.

Where to start?

* * *

**Author's Note:**

And we've finished the Joo Dee arc. Next up we work with poverty.


	18. Hunger

**Chapter Eighteen: Hunger**

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. At once she got dressed and began to think. How was she supposed to deal with poverty? She'd never given any thought to the matter before, aside from sneering at beggers.

Who did she know who understood what it meant to be poor?

Zuko, obviously. She'd got to meet him.

"Azula, you're awake. You've got to try this breakfast. They have the best-"

"Not now Ty Lee, I'm busy!" said Azula as she rushed out the door.

* * *

Once again Azula went to the Jasmine Dragon. Once again she disarmed suspicions. She and Zuko went to a table and he eyed her. It seemed that even if he felt like he trusted her, mentally he knew he shouldn't.

So he didn't.

So much the better, it meant things wouldn't change.

"What do you want, Azula?" he asked.

Azula considered how best to ask what she needed to ask. "What was it like, Zuko?" she said abruptly. Why was she awkward about this? She was never awkward.

"What was what like?" asked Zuko.

"Living in poverty." said Azula. "I'm hoping to do something about the Earth Kingdoms issues. When I take the place over, I mean. And I thought I'd ask for your experiences?"

Zuko raised an eyebrow. Then he crossed his arms and looked down thoughtfully. "…You have to survive. Your whole focus is on where you are going to get your next meal to eat. If you beg, people insult and spit on you. Your nothing to them when you beg, and I don't care what uncle says. Less than nothing.

"Thugs will make you dance for a few coins. And you will dance. Otherwise, you starve."

Azula raised an eyebrow. "Did you actually cooperate?"

"No." said Zuko. "But Uncle did. And that pushed me over the edge. I ambushed the man, and I killed him. Then I took his swords, and after that, the dam broke. I stole from the rich. I told myself they deserved it. But I soon found more reasons other people deserved it.

"Soon I was stealing for the sake of it." He looked up at the ceiling. "I was good at it, Azula. Really good. And when I was a thief, when I was robbing people. I was respected. They wouldn't dare spit at me then."

"So what stopped you?" asked Azula.

Zuko sighed. "I was in the desert and I was starving. I hadn't eaten in days. And I came across a couple traveling with me. They were cooking stew and I thought about robbing them.

"Then I saw that the woman was pregnant. They were expecting a child and I was going to rob them. Take food away from their mouths and their baby's.

"I realized that everybody I had robbed had a family. Someone to provide for. And I moved on. I never stole again after that." He sighed. "Uncle says there is a humble dignity to begging. He's wrong. There is nothing glorious about it. When you're poor, when you don't have a job or a way to feed yourself, you have no dignity. No pride. Nothing. Nothing but shame and humiliation and the hope for the next meal. If even that.

"You don't ponder great mysterious or become wiser. You ponder how not to starve to death. And the hungrier you get the more willing you are to do horrible things.

"I was starving, Azula. And if that woman hadn't been pregnant I would have killed her and her husband." He leaned back in his seat. "And even if you stay fed, even if you scrape together enough coins to not starve, people just tell you to get a job. As if there were any jobs to get.

"You're lucky if people don't give you a sideways glance."

Azula didn't know what to say. What could she say? Zuko had been driven to banditry. He'd almost murdered someone for food. Not money or glory. Food.

Yesterday Azula would have laughed at him. She felt suddenly sick, and she looked down. Had she really been such a horrible person? "I'm sorry, Zuko." She rubbed her chin and blinked back tears. "I realize I'm the last person you'd expect to say that but… it's been a long day." Back to business, quickly. "If you wanted to fix the problem of poverty, what would you do?"

Zuko uncrossed his hands and set them on the table. His fists clenched. "I thought about it for a long time.

"The Earth Kingdom has no good roads. Outside of the major cities the infrastructure is terrible. The Fire Nation colonies aren't perfect, but they're better off than the people here."

"Maybe some kind of public works program?" asked Azula. "We could provide jobs building better roads. We could build housing projects in the outer villages."

"I guess." said Zuko. "There is also a problem with public order. In a lot of places Earth Kingdom soldiers behave like thugs. They're more bandits than soldiers." He sighed "Listen, I have to get back to my shift."

Azula could have insisted he stay. But she decided not to. She had all the time in the world. "It's fine. Don't let me stop you."

As Zuko rose and walked away, Azula remained silent. After a moment she finished her tea. Then she walked over to Uncle and put money on the table. "Here's my bill, uncle. Keep the change."

* * *

Azula didn't go anywhere in particular. She just walked into the worse elements of the city. And she saw things. People. Children starving. Women starving. Men starving. Young and old alike, paupers were everywhere.

And then three familiar thugs made their appearance. Yesterday she would have scoffed at them. They were rough looking. But she could see their ribs.

"Hello, pretty lady." said one.

"Hand over all your coins and we'll be gentle." said another.

They were hungry. Azula could kill them easily. No one would call it wrong if she did it. But she didn't want to. Why not? "...Why are you here?" she asked. "In this place? Did you become criminals out of desperation? Or did you do it because you didn't want to work?"

They paused. Her tone had taken them off guard. "What kind of question is that?"

Time to press her advantage. "I'm just curious what it was that drove you to the point where you were willing to rape and murder an innocent woman."

"No one's innocent." said one. "Least of all us." They were trying to regain the initiative.

"Maybe not." admitted Azula. "But you don't know me or why I'm here. For all you know I could be coming to solve all the problems of this place."

"Enough!" snapped one, brandishing his knife. "Hand over your money, or get your throat cut-"

Azula didn't make any fancy movements. She wasn't trying to show off. In a moment the knives were knocked out of their hands, and one of them was at the leader's throat. His eyes went wide as Azula held the edge near him. It was dull.

"The next time you decide to mug someone, I suggest you remember today." said Azula. "Not everyone is what they appear. Keep on going like this, and sooner or later you'll end up having this knife go just a bit further."

"...Alright, alright, we'll stop. Just let us go."

"Good." said Azula. "You three are fit specimens. I suggest you find honest work.

"Get out of here."

They ran off.

Azula sighed and walked onward. As she did, she saw an old man. The old man, who approached her. "Spare a few coins, please?"

She could give him money. A lot of money. But that would be impersonal. Just a fancy way of appeasing her conscience without fixing the problem. And he might just be robbed if she gave him a lot.

"…I can spare a bit more than that. How about we get you something to eat." said Azula.

* * *

And that was how Azula ended up sitting at a noodle stand. The old man ate hungrily as she watched. He had a burned leg, and his ribs were visible even more than the thugs. Here was someone who couldn't do honest work, or rob others.

He could do nothing but beg.

And she had shoved him over. What had she been thinking?

She hadn't been thinking. Princess Azula had thought only of herself, how she didn't want to be near this smelly old man. He hadn't been a person; he'd been a thing.

The man looked at her, as she paid his tab.

"Why are you doing this?" he asked.

"I had a brother who spent time on the streets." said Azula. "People used to sneer at him. And... well... I was one of them.

"How did this happen to you?" Why had she asked that?

He sighed. "I was a soldier in the Earth Kingdom army. During the uh... the..."

"The war?" guessed Azula.

He looked around, then down. "Yes." His voice was low.

"You don't have to worry about the Dai Li." said Azula. "What happened?"

He sighed and raised his burnt leg. "Well my leg, it got burnt. I was healed, but I wasn't able to march anymore. So I was discharged. But when I got back home, I found that my village had been burned down.

"So I headed to Ba Sing Se. I learned to beg to survive.

"But... uh... well there aren't many jobs anywhere for a crippled old man without skills. So I ended up begging here instead."

Azula remained silent. "What do you think of the Fire Nation? Do you hate them?"

"The Fire Nation is a word." said the man. "Most folks have never seen someone from it. It's just a thing that drags their families away. Like I got dragged away.

"I remember during the fight, the one where I got this burn, I drove my spear into the firebender as he burned me. He was just a boy, younger than I was. I wondered what brought him out here.

"I think it was the same thing that brought me out there. We were both drafted."

"Fire Benders are expected to join the military." realized Azula. "They don't have a choice. They can be engineers or military. Sometimes they get put on homeland duty, but they have to spend a term."

"Really?" he looked up from surprise.

"I fled from the colonies." said Azula. "I came here looking for someone."

"Did you find them?" asked the man.

Who had she been looking for? Zuko or the Avatar? She supposed it must have been the Avatar. Azula smiled. It was such a long time ago. "No. Though I expect I'll see them at the end of the day.

"Is there..." She stopped. "Isn't there anything which the Earth King does for you? Anywhere you can go for help?"

He shook his head. "No."

"But this is Ba Sing Se! Everyone I talked to outside thought of it as the great hope of the Earth Kingdom!" said Azula. "Are you seriously telling me you arrived and were thrown right back onto the street?"

"I can't do work." said the man. "All I can do is beg. People would rather I just jump off a bridge and reduce the surplus populace."

Her own words were thrown back at her. She'd said them herself, so smug. As if she had any understanding of the world she lived in. She'd never gone hungry or been without shelter. She'd assumed eating trail rations while traveling was hard. But even that was done with luxuries unavailable to common people. Let alone beggers.

And there was always a warm bed at the end. She could just walk into any house in Fire Nation territory and demand they put her up. And they would gladly.

She'd forced Zuko into this life. She'd taken away his home, made him a vagabond in the wilderness. He'd had to beg and steal just to survive.

And she'd laughed about it. She'd been smug and ignorant and horrible.

Azula was, for the first time in her life, speechless. Her mouth was open, but no words came out. She clenched a hand and looked down. "It shouldn't be this way. It shouldn't."

The man put a hand to her shoulder. "Cheer up. You've given this old man hope if nothing else. Young people are the ones' who make the new world.

"There is no war in Ba Sing Se. Maybe someday there won't be a war outside it either."

He stood and left. As he did, Azula watched him limp away. "...I'll change it, I promise you that."

* * *

Azula awoke on cushions of the finest silk and felt the rays of the sun on her face. And she hated it. She threw on her clothes and rushed out, barely stopping to brush her hair.

Ty Lee looked up. "Azula-"

"We're doing some more research." said Azula. "I want to come up with a workable plan for ending poverty and providing a safety net for the disabled. And I need it by the end of the day."

There was a pause. "...Do you want sausages?" asked Ty Lee.

"No." said Azula.

She had work to do.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

And Azula finally figures out what a jerk she's been.

Before this point, Azula has been gradually becoming nice. But it's all been about her. Now that she has empathy, she's getting slammed with the guilt of her previous actions.

Also, I am convinced that Zuko murdered that man who tormented Iroh. Zuko's defining quality is his pride, which is balanced by his love of those close to him and his great empathy. That man made sport of a Prince of the Fire Nation, his uncle, and humiliated him. Thus pushing every single one of Zuko's berserk buttons. If Zuko was willing to steal from Song, I think he would be willing to kill that man.

There are also pragmatic reasons. Swords are valuable and if the man reported their loss he could be tracked down.

So yeah, that scene takes on a whole new meaning if you believe those swords promptly went into the man's jugular.


	19. The Seed of Knowledge

**Chapter Nineteen: The Seed of Knowledge**

It was yet another meeting between the three of them.

Azula leaned back in her seat, Mai and Ty Lee on opposite sides of the table from one another. They shifted through report after report.

"I've made a list of all the areas with gold." said Mai. "I've also contacted the appraisal experts. They estimate that all the valuables in the palace would be enough to feed thousands for a month."

Azula nodded. "Excellent work, Mai. Now there is the matter of the nobility."

"The nobility?" asked Ty Lee.

"Yes." said Azula. "I need to get a general estimate of how valuable everything they have is."

"Azula, what exactly are we planning here?" asked Ty Lee.

"When I eventually take over Ba Sing Se I will strip the nobles of their wealth. And I'll pour it into public works and charities." said Azula.

"Well that's uh… nice." said Ty Lee.

"Wouldn't it make more sense to do this after we stage the coup?" asked Mai.

"I told you, I'm in the middle of a time loop." said Azula. "We can take over Ba Sing Se easily. I want a good plan of what to do afterward."

"Okay, but what is our end goal?" asked Mai.

"To lift the people of the Earth Kingdom out of poverty." said Azula. "To share the Fire Nation's greatness with the world as Sozin intended! To make sure no one has to suffer like Zuko did!"

Dead silence for a moment.

"What is this about Zuko-" began Mai.

"Yes, I'm a hypocrite." said Azula. "Shut up.

"Anyway, I figure bankrupting the nobility and giving their money to the poor will be good for popular."

"Azula, that's just treating the symptom." said Mai. "Charity can help people. But if you don't solve the underlying issues the situation won't improve."

"And what are the underlying issues then?" asked Azula, irritated. Why was she being so much trouble about all this?

Mai sighed. "The Earth Kingdom has been at war for a hundred years. Most of the battles have been on their territory. So the wars have caused a lot of desolation. With all the destruction it would make improving the country much harder.

"Also, a lot of these nobles got their money from plunder."

"So it's the war's fault?" scoffed Azula. "Why hasn't the Fire Nation suffered like this?"

"Well, we are the superior nation." said Mai.

Yesterday Azula never would have questioned that answer. Today, however, was a very different day. So she looked Mai in the eye so hard that the girl flinched. "That doesn't answer my question."

Mai shifted nervously. Finally, she looked away. "The Fire Nation is on an island. Ever since then Prince Ozai crushed the South Pole the only major naval threat to us has been in the North. And they're on the other side of the world.

"Since we have complete naval superiority we can land anywhere along the mainland. That means that we have the initiative. We can attack. They can't."

Azula leaned back in her chair with a sigh. What to do about this? She supposed she could ask for input." "Alright, so let's say you wanted to give employment to people in the Earth Kingdom? How would you do it?"

Mai considered the question for a few long moments. "Industrialization. I'd introduce the factory system.

"Assembly lines have a great many people working to create a single object. You pay them smaller wages, but more of them are employe. It could help raise the standard of living."

"And what would you build?" asked Azula. "Once we conquer the Earth Kingdom we won't need war machines. Not as many anyway."

"Maybe we could build things that could help people?" said Ty Lee. "Like some sort of tank that farms."

Azula put her face in her hands. Leave it to Ty Lee. "A tank that farms?

"Ty Lee, that's got to be…"

"It could work." said Mai suddenly.

Azula looked at Mai incredulously. "What do you mean?"

"If you think about it the whole problem with farming is tilling the earth." said Mai. "Tanks need to have a lot of power to move the armor. Take away the armor, and it could be used to move huge loads."

Azula realized that could work. And so the discussions began. They talked about all kinds of things. They gave input on all kinds of issues. But there was something wrong.

And then Azula realized what it was.

None of them lived in the Earth Kingdom. Ty Lee, Mai and her had never starved to near death. They'd never even had to live in lower class areas. So they lacked experience. If Uncle or Zuko or Jin were here, they could point out all kinds of flaws. Things which they wouldn't see.

"I need to get a second opinion on this." decided Azula as she stood up. "I'm going to invite Zuko and Uncle here."

Mai blinked. "Are they here?"

"Yes." said Azula. "Let me just set things up. Actually, I'd better wait for the next loop. Hang on."

She spent the rest of the loop brainstorming plans. No matter how bloodlessly she conquered Ba Sing Se, she'd still be regarded as an invader. Was there a way to simulate that?

Questions for later.

She spent the rest of the loop at the Jasmine Dragon, reading some of the notes Mai provided. They were very well put together. But they didn't provide understanding.

* * *

The coup had become easy to do. Very easy, in fact. It was down to simple math at this point. Say these few phrases with the right emotion to the right people. Strike at these points here and there. Pretty soon the entire palace had fallen, and hardly anyone even knew.

Easy. She didn't even have to be there to pull it off at this point. She could liquidate Long Feng's loyalists in her sleep.

That was why Azula was making her way to the Jasmine Dragon. In theory, she could just invite Zuko, Uncle, and Jin like in any other loop. But if she did that her conversation would be theoretical. They wouldn't take it seriously.

But if Zuko, Jin, and Uncle spoke to her in an occupied city, that would give her an idea of how they would react.

She entered the Jasmine Dragon as they were setting up. Zuko and Uncle looked up in surprise, and she waved. Jin would be coming soon. "Hello, Zuko, Uncle, sorry to appear like this unannounced. I need your help on something, and if you don't help me, there will be problems."

They looked at eachother, then at her. "What do you want, Azula?"

"Well, Ty Lee, Mai and myself are planning to hold a meeting to discuss how to best improve the Earth Kingdom." said Azula. "And I thought you two might have some insight."

Zuko eyed her suspiciously. "….What's in this for you?"

Azula sighed. "Nothing. I've recently realized what a terrible person I am, and I want to fix this." She motioned around her. "All this."

"I'm not certain that-" began Uncle.

"And if you don't help me I'll alert the Dai Li about who you really are." said Azula. "Sorry, I'd like to do this without threats, but it's part of the experiment."

And then the door opened, and Jin rushed in. "Hello, I'm sorry I'm late…" She halted. "Um, who is this?"

Azula looked up and smiled. Jin smiled back, somewhat nervously. She hadn't seen Jin in a while. "Oh, Jin. Nice to see you. How about you accompany us to the palace? We'll need the insight of someone who has lived in Ba Sing Se all her life."

"Who are you?" asked Jin in surprise.

"I'm Lee's sister." said Azula. "I work at the palace, and I wanted to get his and Mushi's insight into certain matters. Of course, we'll need a justification, so we'll just say that you're here to serve tea to the Earth King."

"Will he accept that?" asked Uncle doubtfully.

"Doesn't matter, I've already overthrown him." said Azula.

They halted. "How? When?" asked Zuko.

"You overthrew the Earth King?" asked Jin. "Is this some kind of joke?"

"Oh right. Um…" Azula was used to trusting these people. It had slipped out. "Alright well, I suppose there isn't much point in disguising things now. Dai Li, grab her." And she tapped her foot.

"Jin!" cried Zuko. "Look out!"

In came the Dai Li. Zuko moved instantly, and several of them were knocked flat. Azula was honestly impressed at how many he took out. He was trained in infiltration, wasn't he? So he must have known the Dai Li were there before anyone else.

Either way, he and Uncle were captured quickly.

"Look I was hoping to avoid this, but I can't exactly have her tell everyone about what just happened." said Azula. "I need to buy time for the army to come in."

"You won't get away with this!" cried Jin as they were led away.

Azula reflected that that was true. Getting away implied that her actions would have meaning. And no matter what she did she'd wake up the next day.

Unless maybe, just maybe, she made a day so good it couldn't be repeated. "Believe me, I know that all too well." said Azula.

* * *

She let them stay in their cells for a little while.

Azula wanted to simulate things properly. And she had plenty of daylight left before the Avatar arrived. Even if she did, she had dozens of plans in place to remove him. Katara, by now, had been safely neutralized.

At last, they held the meeting.

Jin, Zuko, and Uncle were led into the room as Azula looked through reports. Mai was by her right hand; Ty Lee was at her left.

Zuko glared at her. "What do you want, Azula?"

"Your input, of course." said Azula. "Mai, Ty Lee and myself are planning to fix all the Earth Kingdoms problems. You, Zuko, have been outside of the walls of Ba Sing Se, so your knowledge could be invaluable."

"Zuko?" asked Jin. "And she's your sister. You're… you're that banished Prince whose always hunting the Avatar, aren't you?"

"Yes." said Zuko.

"…Why did you lie to me?" asked Jin.

"Whenever I tell people who I am, they reject me." said Zuko.

"Very charming." said Mai. "Can you sit down so we can discuss this?"

"It's been away Zuko." said Ty Lee. "How'd you end up here anyway?"

"It's a long story." said Zuko.

"Well we've got time." said Azula. "So I want you to explain everything that's happened up until now, with you and Uncle. So everyone is on the same page."

And Zuko did explain. Azula asked questions every so often. Mostly to guide the conversation in one direction or another. Ty Lee often did the same. Jin remained silent, staring in shock as one story after another came about.

Eventually, Azula looked to Jin. "Well, this has been interesting. But I think we'll have to get down to business. Zuko, I have a number of suggestions from both Mai and Ty Lee that they hope will improve the Earth Kingdom.

"I was hoping you could look at them." She slid the file across.

Zuko opened it and looked through it. "…Farming tanks? The Earth Kingdom isn't suffering famine because of manpower shortages."

"Then what is the problem?" asked Azula.

"Soil exhaustion." said Zuko. "I don't think they've figured out the same farming techniques we use in the Fire Nation."

"What do you mean?" asked Jin. "What's this about farming?"

"The Fire Nation never had much good land in it." said Zuko. "So we had to use what we had properly. There are techniques for getting the most out of the land. But if you're careless, you can ruin it.

"I think the Earth Kingdom uses slash and burn agriculture in some places. It isn't their fault, they just haven't had the time to do it. With the war."

"I'm impressed Zuko," said Azula, "when did you become an expert on agriculture?"

Zuko looked up. "I'm sure it seems like news to you. But I paid attention during our lessons."

Ouch.

Come to think of it, Azula had mostly focused on firebending practice and tactics. And after Father began to teach her personally, she'd had even less time to study. While she'd been working on killing people, Zuko had been learning boring subjects. Subjects that were actually much more important to the average person.

"…Jin," said Azula, drawing up the other file, "I'd like you to fill out this form." And she slid it across to her.

"I… I can't read." said Jin.

"Ah," said Azula, "well fine. Zuko, tell her what the questions are and fill it out for her please."

She looked to Uncle. He was eyeing her with a strange expression. "Azula, I have never seen you like this. Might I ask what it was that brought this on?"

"Father taught me nothing." snapped Azula. "All my life I've been told I'm a prodigy. Told I could do anything. I can use techniques of firebending that masters twice my age can't do. I can engineer the downfall of an entire city overnight.

"But I don't know how to run it. I can't build anything from the ashes of the things I destroy.

"I spent my entire childhood scoffing at Zuko because he had to learn all the boring things. Those were the only things he was good at. But he was learning to rule. I was only learning to be Father's attack dog.

"I know nothing, Uncle."

Uncle remained silent. "There is a saying, Azula. That the first step to true wisdom is knowing that you are ignorant. The very fact that you have realized your limitations means you have learned more than many ever did."

"It hardly matters." said Azula. "One day is the same as the next. No matter how much I learn I'll always end up here."

"Then live for today." said Uncle. "Seek to help others. Conquest is not the way to help anyone. And grand plans for the future are often derailed. In my experience, it is small acts of good, done often on a whim, that help the most."

Zuko shoved the file back to her. Azula looked at the form with dead eyes. "That's all. You can go."

Zuko and Iroh departed. Mai went with them. Ty Lee looked in concern at Azula. "Azula, are you okay?"

Azula remained silent. Live for today? Wasn't that what she had been doing?

No, everything she had been doing was in service of tomorrow. In pursuit of a day that might never come. She realized that she might never wake up and find that it was the next day.

What would she do if there was no tomorrow? What if this was permanent?

She read the forms Jin had filled out. Memorizing them, she stood and went to bed early.

What if there was no tomorrow?

* * *

Azula awoke on pillows of the finest silk with the sun on her face. And as she stood up, she felt something she hadn't in a long time. Hope.

She stood and walked into the next room.

If there was no tomorrow than today was the most precious gift that she could receive. And she would not waste it.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

You may notice a subtle difference in the opening line and the way Azula wakes up. This was deliberate since it symbolizes her changed mental state.


	20. Disappointing Revelation

**Chapter Twenty: Disappointing Revelation**

Azula lived for today.

At first, she focused on learning as much as she could. She raided libraries and read. She learned mathematics and history. As she did, she came to know the librarians. Then the servants.

As the day passed, again and again, she developed a routine. Each day she would seek out some new person in Ba Sing Se and speak to them. She spoke to paupers and learned the problems they faced. She spoke with guardsmen, both corrupt and honest and learned how their minds worked. She worked with merchants, learning the details of their trade.

Sometimes she would take the day off and spend time with Jin and Zuko. She had tea with Iroh and all manner of things. Her ambitions to conquer Ba Sing Se began to fade. No matter how many times she repeated the day there were always new things to learn.

* * *

And then, one day, she was lying awake, waiting for the day to reset. She was waiting to fall asleep and looking forward to today. She'd left the window in her room wide open and she was looking out into the night sky. The moon seemed large, very large. Larger than usual anyway.

Then a beam of light shot through the window. Azula raised an arm to shield her eyes as a figure descended. Gradually it began to fade. Azula scrambled out of bed and saw before her a beautiful girl her own age. The idea of forcing her onto the bed occurred to Azula, but she crushed the idea.

She didn't do that anymore.

She had white hair and tan skin. Like the people of the Water Tribes.

This had never happened before.

"What is going on here?" asked Azula. "Who are you?"

She paused. "I... well I haven't done this before. My name is Yue. I am the Moon Spirit."

"Really?" said Azula. "This is... new."

"Yes, well, I'm not supposed to intervene except in serious situations." said Yue. "But at this rate, the world might get stuck in a neverending loop."

Azula shifted. "So you know about the time loop?"

"Yes." said Yue. "As the Moon Spirit, I exist outside of time and space. You see, there was a very specific purpose these loops keep happening."

Azula saw where this was going. "Because I'd be a terrible Firelord?"

Yue shifted. "Well..."

"It is obvious in retrospect." said Azula with a sigh. "Zuko is better suited to the role. He learned more about how to run things, and he understands people. But Father would look for any excuse to make me the heir.

"I've always been his favorite.

"If I had become Firelord before this loop I would have been a vicious tyrant. I'd have run the entire world into the ground."

Yue shifted even more nervously. Azula had the feeling something she had said had embarrassed the Moon Spirit. Why was she so calm about this. "Um... none of that's untrue, but it's not why the loop happened."

Azula looked at Yue flatly. "Then why?"

Yue sighed. "Well, everything went perfectly. Then there was a minor mixup with the spirits of the space-time continuum. They accidentally sent you back a day."

"Minor mishap?" asked Azula.

"Yes..." said Yue. "You see the spirit of time and space were observing the conquest of Ba Sing Se. But the spirit of space missed the final battle because he went to get some snacks. So the spirit of time opted to turn back the day, however, something went wrong, and you remembered it."

"And the loop proceeded from there?" asked Azula.

"Well no, actually." said Yue. "You see, you have a destiny and part of that destiny was conquering Ba Sing Se. So you succeeded in that the first time. But in the next few times, you screwed it up. So, well... the spirit of time had to keep sending you back, or the world could be doomed."

"Wait a minute, I succeeded later." said Azula.

Yue shifted even more. "Well yes but um... Well, destiny demands a very specific level of success."

This sounded like something that was going to infuriate Azula. "What do you mean?"

Yue stepped from foot to foot. "Well you see, the spirits want the hundred-year war to end. Right now the Avatar and his friends are planning an invasion of the Fire Nation. They are going to do it with the help of the Earth Kingdom. If all goes well, a huge fleet will attack your homeland-"

"During an eclipse." said Azula. "I remember this. If they did hit us, they could do some serious damage. Do you consider that a problem?"

"We can't let it succeed." admitted Yue.

"So you're on our side." guessed Azula, liking this less by the moment.

"We're on no ones' side." said Yue. "We're not allowed to play favorites. We want the war to end. It's causing all kinds of problems. Not just for humans, but also for the entire world. But if the Earth Kingdom conquered the Fire Nation with the Avatar's help, what would you and Zuko do?"

Azula considered the question. Azula would have been infuriated and returned at once. And Zuko would have been horrified and have gone to fight as well. Any attempt on Iroh's part to turn Zuko over to the Avatar's side would be futile at that point.

They'd definitely end up working together. "...We'd head back home, rally the military and make their life hell."

"Exactly." said Yue. "Sokka's plan was good. But it was a purely military one. It would crush the Fire Nation, but only set the stage for a greater conflict. Rather than renewing the Avatar cycle, it would discredit it.

"Aang would become a symbol of oppression to the Fire Nation. And Zuko would become a hero when he killed him."

Azula blinked. She was impressed. She'd never thought Zuko would manage that. "Zuko would kill the Avatar?"

Yue sighed. "Aang is a bit too nice for his own good, he never fights to kill. The Earth Kingdom isn't as nice. They would want revenge. They'd have committed all kinds of atrocities and looted the Fire Nation for all it was worth. Aang wouldn't be able to restrain them. That would push Zuko over the edge, and with your help, he would ambush Aang and murder him. Ty Lee would take him by surprise.

"What would then follow would be a gruesome guerilla war. It would probably end with the Earth Kingdom pulling out in defeat. Zuko and you would then spend the rest of your lives taking vengeance on the Earth Kingdom.

"And all future Avatar's would have a much harder time. The propaganda of Sozin would have become the truth."

Azula blinked in surprise. "So you wanted me to capture Ba Sing Se."

Yue crossed her arms. "Well, you're coup was bloodless. It seized the city and brought a halt to the war. While the Fire Nation consolidated its gains, the Avatar could take steps to end the war. But he would have to do it by his own resources without any government backing him.

"If Aang failed to defeat Ozai another Avatar could take his place. But if he succeeded, it would have been the Avatar defeating Ozai. Not the Earth Kingdom enslaving the Fire Nation.

"It's all about symbolism."

"But I did do that!" said Azula. "I did it on... uh... it was the fourth loop." It had been a long time ago.

Yue looked even more embarrassed. "Yes. But you killed Aang. In the Avatar State. If he dies in that he dies forever. That created a worst-case scenario. one where the Fire Nation completely wins with no Avatar to restore balance."

Azula stared at her. Was she serious? And was she deranged? "...Do you know what the words 'worst case scenario mean.'"

"Yes." said Yue.

"I'm not sure about that." said Azula.

"I used to be a Princess of the North Pole." explained Yue.

Azula nodded. This was really typical. "Oh that explains it, you're a water peasant."

"I'm a Princess!" said Yue.

"Whatever." said Azula. "So what exactly was the problem?"

Yue was blushing with shame at this point. "Well... you stopped trying to take over Ba Sing Se after that. Later on you did it as an afterthought, but you always killed Aang. So we couldn't end on any of those loops.

"So um, I was kind of hoping you could do what you did on the first day."

Azula went very still. This couldn't be true. She wasn't serious was she? She was. She was. "...Wait a minute, so you're saying that the months, possibly years I've spent in mental torture could have been easily avoided if I'd just done **EXACTLY THE SAME THING I DID IN THE FIRST PLACE****?!"**

Yue hung her head. "Well there is no easy way to say this, but... yes.

"Anyway, the loop is set up to be fulfilled after you conquer Ba Sing Se without killing Aang or any of his companions. I figured you ought to know. Before you achieved enlightenment and trapped the world in this one day forever."

Azula clenched her fist. "...Yeah, okay. We'll play your game. But I just want you to know that I'm not in this for your idea of balance. I'm going to conquer Ba Sing Se. And then as soon as I've done that, I'll kill the Avatar, for real this time, and I'll conquer the rest of the world.

"I will then bring about a new order of peace and prosperity. Under Fire Nation Rule."

Yue shifted. "Um... really?"

"Yes." said Azula.

"Well, I was kind of hoping you'd see the error of your ways and try to join the Avatar, to be honest." said Yue.

Azula scoffed. "What's to join? He's an incompetent, easily manipulated, naive imbecile. You just outright told me that if I don't stop him, he becomes a puppet for the Earth Kingdoms oppression.

"And don't give me anything about the nations being separate. The Fire Nation is better in every way."

Yue's eyes narrowed. "Really? What does the Fire Nation have that the other cultures don't?"

"Gender equality?" said Azula flatly.

Yue paused. "...Fine, gender equality is one thing the Fire Nation does have."

"Rapid message systems." said Azula.

"Yes but-" began Yue.

"Roads." said Azula.

"You don't need to harp on it." said Yue.

"You don't see Fire Nation soldiers oppressing their own citizens, either." noted Azula.

"Yes, they just oppress everyone else's citizens." noted Yue.

"Which won't be a problem once we conquer the world." said Azula. "Also our tea is much better."

"Yes, you've made your point." hissed Yue.

"And our shipbuilding technology is superior in every way. Not to mention the numerous other inventions we've created." said Azula. "My point is, the Fire Nation is better. In every possible way.

"Our mission to share our greatness with the rest of the world was completely justified. The rest of the world is a collection of disorganized savages in need of enlightenment. We just didn't go about it in the most efficient way. Well, I'm going to go about it in the most efficient way. Whether any of you like it or not."

Yue turned and walked toward the window. "I'm going to go back to the moon now."

"Sure, whatever helps you sleep at night." said Azula.

Yue glanced back. "I don't sleep at night."

And she was gone.

* * *

Azula awoke with the sun on her face. She rose up and made her way out. She could probably end the loop at any time now that she knew what to do. But she wasn't going to.

She was going to make this conquest perfect.

So Azula rose to her feet and made her way out into the door. "Finish breakfast quickly, ladies. We've got plans to make."

* * *

**Author's Note:**

This chapter was planned for a long time. I feel somewhat insecure about this explanation; however I wanted to do something new.

Also, I do believe that Azula taking over Ba Sing Se was ultimately a good thing in the long run. It meant that the Gaang got full credit for beating Ozai. If Sokka's original plan actually worked you'd just end up with an occupation. And since taking over the Fire Nation would alienate Zuko, it would lead to a cynical downer ending.

The war would simply continue.

It might even be a worthwhile fic to explore.


	21. The Final Coup

**Chapter Twenty-one: The Final Coup**

Azula wasn't feeling up to this at all.

She spent the day wandering, walking from one place to another. She did a bit of window shopping, feeling emotionally dead. Not to mention out of ideas. Several times she would begin a plan, only to abandon it. Mai and Ty Lee walked behind her, shifting uncomfortably.

"So weren't we going to do some planning?" asked Mai.

"We were," said Azula.

"Are we?" asked Ty Lee.

"I might," said Azula, feeling defensive.

"Is something wrong?" asked Ty Lee.

"There isn't any point, is there?" asked Azula. "I mean I go through all this learning and it's all just the same in the end.

"I need to talk to Uncle.

"No, that won't do any good.

"Let's get some tea. Not the Jasmine Dragon."

"The what?" asked Mai.

"Nothing," said Azula.

One explanation later, Mai and Ty Lee looked at her. They were much less incredulous than they had been before. "So you've found a way out of this eternal loop you think you're in."

"No, I don't think I'm in one," said Azula. "I know I'm in one."

"Okay," said Mai. "So what's the problem? Why don't you just leave?"

Azula sighed. "It turns out that all I had to do was exactly the same thing I was going to do before. Conquer Ba Sing Se.

"I could do it in my sleep."

"So what's the problem?" asked Mai.

It had been so long. But the obvious came to Azula at last. "I don't want to conquer Ba Sing Se anymore. I mean, I might, but it would just be a means to an end. And what kind of sense does that make? I'm a horrible person, so I get trapped in an eternal loop. I become a better person because of it. And then I get out by doing everything I did before.

"I'm not that person anymore." She sighed.

"Well, in that case, why don't you just talk with the Avatar and ask him for his infinite wisdom?" asked Mai sarcastically.

Azula crossed her arms. "Fine. Maybe I will."

Azula probably could have just waited until the Avatar appeared and just talked to him. He would have been open to it. But Azula didn't like the Avatar and had no intention of playing the game the spirit's way.

So she passed the rest of the loop at the local Zoo. The animals were actually quite interesting. Even if they weren't on fire.

* * *

The next loop she went with Mai and Ty Lee to find Katara. She didn't bother waiting for her to come out of the room. Instead, she blasted the door off its hinges and walked in to find Katara in her underwear. It was a nice view.

"Katara, how have you been?" asked Azula. "I haven't spent any quality time with you in hours."

Katara ran for her waterskin, and then Ty Lee leaped over her and knocked her limp with one hand. Katara stared up as Azula kneeled down by her. "Azula-"

Azula fit a gag into her mouth and tied it. Reaching under Katara, Azula pulled her up in a bridal hold, enjoying her warmth. She enjoyed her tiny struggles just as much. Even so, now was not the time. "That never gets old. Mai, Ty Lee, I have a job for you."

They gave Katara to the Dai Li, who put her away in the usual place. From there, Azula sent the usual messages. She arranged for the General's meeting to be raided just after they finished the message. From there, she was right on time for her meeting with Zuko and Uncle. She didn't insist on Jin this time, no sense in breaking things to them too suddenly. Azula watched the two of them enter from hiding.

"We have come to serve tea to the Earth King himself Zuko," said Iroh. "This is a profound honor for the both of us."

"I know. I'm happy for you, Uncle," said Zuko.

Azula walked forward, not flanked by the Dai Li. They were off performing their duties. She raised a hand in greeting. "Hello, Zuzu, nice to see you as well, Uncle."

Both took stances. "Azula?" said Zuko. "What are you doing here?" His confusion was so cute.

"Oh let me see…" said Azula, "taking over Ba Sing Se." She raised a finger. "Imprisoning the Earth King." She raised another. "Neutralizing the Avatar's friends." She raised a third. "And corrupting you."

"What do you want?" asked Zuko.

Azula sighed. "In all seriousness, we have a crisis on our hands. And you have a chance to regain your honor."

"The kind of honor you provide is not for him," said Iroh.

"Maybe you should let Zuko make his own decisions, Uncle," said Azula. "Sit down, please."

Neither one move.

"Sit," said Azula.

They obeyed, and she sat down. She poured herself a cup of tea, then both of them. Finally, she sighed. "Zuko, the Avatar and his friends have a plan. A solar eclipse is coming that will wipe out all firebending for a limited period. In that time the Earth Kingdom will launch an all-out assault on our homeland, with the Avatar at the head.

"They'll strike directly at father."

Iroh eyed her in surprise. "How do you know this?"

"I have the order right here," said Azula, raising what she had stolen from the General's messenger. "You know what will happen if the Earth Kingdom takes control of the Fire Nation. You've seen what they do. Didn't they try to break Uncle's arms and legs?"

Zuko had never told her about that before today, and he looked to Iroh in shock. Then back to Azula. "What do you want?"

"My takeover of the city is almost complete," said Azula. "But it stands on a hair's breadth. One wrong move and we lose. And the Avatar and his friends are coming back.

"I need your help to stop him.

"Zuko, I know this is a lot, but can you trust me not to betray our nation, at least?"

There was a long silence. Iroh sipped his tea. "Tell me, did I ever tell you how I got the name, 'Dragon of the West?'"

And then he started breathing fire, and both made a run for it. Azula sighed and walked after him. "There, he goes again."

Iroh broke through the wall and leaped out. Zuko looked down.

"Come on!" Azula heard Iroh say.

"No, I'm done running," said Zuko. He turned to her. Azula eyed him. She realized she'd never been in this position before. "So Zuko, what is it going to be?"

Zuko pointed at her. "When this is over, you and I will fight an Agni Kai."

Azula shrugged. "Fair enough."

The Earth King was in danger. A coup was happening as they spoke. Sokka and Toph rushed through the halls, looking for the Earth King.

But they saw nothing and no one.

"The palace is so empty," said Sokka. "What happened here?"

"I don't know," said Toph.

Then they opened a door and walked into a room whose floor was covered in mud. Toph stepped into it. "Sokka, give me your hand."

"Why?" asked Sokka.

"I can't sense as well here," said Toph. "The ground is so muddy I can't really-"

And then Ty Lee dropped down from above and hit them both on the shoulder. They fell to the ground. Sokka looked up as the perky girl waved. "Hi.

"We happened. Hey Mai, how do you think Azula knew they'd be coming in here?"

"Shut up and help me tie them up," said Mai, drawing out a rope. "This mud is ruining my robes."

* * *

Azula made her way through the underground city and found Katara being dragged toward her. Her hands were chained to the wall. She was also only half dressed, so that was a bonus. Azula remembered the fun they'd had in some of the earlier loops.

A pity good people couldn't do that sort of thing although there might be a way to make Katara beg for it. Azula decided she'd make that her goal once this was over.

"You!" said Katara.

"Yes, me," said Azula, striding forward.

"So, I'll bet this is some kind of trap for Aang," said Katara.

"Quite the opposite," said Azula. "You're more bargaining chip than bait. Though you are quite a chip." She licked her lips and set a hand to Katara's cheek.

Katara looked away. "How did you get here?"

"Well first I beat up the Kyoshi Warriors and took their clothes," said Azula.

Her eyes widened. "You… you monster?"

"I'm a monster because I won a fight against someone you like?" asked Azula. "You are a self-centered person, aren't you?"

"Shut up!" snarled Katara. "You don't know anything about me! Do you have any idea what the Fire Nation has done to me!"

"Yes," said Azula, "but I'm sure you're going to tell me again."

"You killed my mother!" snarled Katara.

Azula waited patiently, more for effect than an actual plan. She was enjoying their positions here. Part of her wanted to go further, have some fun with the girl. But Azula pushed that part down. She was trying to be something resembling a decent human being now.

So she'd merely chain Katara up in her underwear instead.

Azula supposed this was only a small amount of progress. "…And?"

Katara stared at her. "What?"

"There must be something more to it than that," said Azula, leaning in close. "Go on, give me the other details of your tragic backstory? I enjoy your voice when you're angry."

Katara blushed and pulled away. She averted her gaze. "I'm wasting my breathe on you. You're just a horrible princess who thinks the entire world is owed to her because of her blood! You've never had to deal with anything like I have."

"My mother abandoned me when I was younger than that blind girl you walk around with," said Azula flatly.

Katara halted. She looked at her. "She… abandoned you?"

"Yes," said Azula. "I never even found out why. She always viewed me as a monster. She was right, of course, but it still hurt." She paused. "Speaking of which, do you want to know how Zuko got his scar?"

"What?" said Katara. "I thought it was in battle."

"It could hardly be called that," said Azula, putting a hand on her shoulder and squeezing. "You see, my father never really liked Zuko once. One day, Zuko asked my uncle to let him sit in on a war meeting. One of the generals started making plans to send an entire army of inexperienced recruits to die. Zuko spoke up and accused him of wasting the lives of our loyal subjects.

"Father was very displeased about the outburst. He challenged Zuko to an Agni Kai. Zuko begged for forgiveness, and Father gets angry." She brought up a hand and put it over Katara's eye. "He put his hand, just here, and he burned half of Zuko's face off." She focused just a tiny bit of heat through it, and Katara flinched. "Just kidding.

"Anyway, then he sent Zuzu into permanent exile until he can find the Avatar.

"Zuko doesn't hold a grudge against Father for it."

Katara stared as Azula drew back her hand. "He did that to his own son?"

"Well, I was always his favorite, so yes," said Azula. "You'll forgive me if I find your little excuse for hating the Fire Nation just slightly pitiful."

Katara remained silent. "You people are horrible. How… how do you live with yourselves?"

"We win," said Azula. "Success breeds success. Those who succeed do so because Agni wills it. "Anyway, I've got business elsewhere. We'll have time to develop this relationship tomorrow." She glanced back to the Dai Li. "Keep her here. I've got someone to meet."

Azula strode off to meet the Avatar. As she left Katara behind, she thought about all the different things she would do, once she got out of today. She'd definitely be keeping both Katara and Jin. Jin was just nice company, and Katara would be fun to break. As nicely as possible, of course.

Azula wondered if you could brainwash someone while still being a good person? It seemed self-contradictory, but she was sure she could find a way.

For now, she had a negotiation to get to.

* * *

** Author's Note:**

I sincerely apologize for how long it took to update this.

I got completely burned out after chapter twenty. In the end, I managed to overcome writer's block by channeling that feeling of exhaustion into Azula. I had her feel very burned out, and that led to her next actions.

The good news is that the next chapter is at least partially written. So it might not take three millenia to come out.


	22. Showdown

**Chapter Twenty-Two: Showdown**

It was the last stages of planning. Azula, Ty Lee, Mai, Zuko, and the Dai Li were standing near the chamber where Azula had arranged the meeting. Of course, the Avatar didn't know the meeting was arranged, but Azula knew where the passage would appear.

"Are you sure about this, Azula?" asked Ty Lee.

"Yes, I'm sure of it," said Azula in irritation as she turned a red feathered arrow over in one hand. "We can't get rid of the Avatar today. So instead we'll get him to leave of his own accord, then give him an incentive to come back and fall into our trap later.

"We'll have to stick around Ba Sing Se for a while to arrange the occupation anyway."

"Why can't we get rid of him today?" asked Mai.

"Because the time loop doesn't work that way," said Azula. "Very specific things have to happen.

"Now get into hiding, they're coming." She looked up to Zuko. "Are you alright?"

"Yes," said Zuko. "I'm fine."

They got to their places. Soon enough, the wall came down, and Aang and Uncle entered. They had, apparently, been having a conversation of some kind. At once, Aang took a stance with his staff.

Azula waved. "Hello, Avatar. Uncle, so glad you could make it."

"Azula," said Uncle.

"Where's Katara!" shouted Aang, sending a wave of air.

Azula leaped aside easily. "No need for that. I'm just here to talk."

"What are you doing in Ba Sing Se?!" shouted Aang.

Azula considered that. "Well, I think I just took over the entire city and imprisoned all your friends. But when you do something, routinely you sometimes don't remember them.

"Yeah, I'm confident they're all in prison."

"Let them go!" shouted Aang.

"Why do you think I want to talk with you?" asked Azula. "It certainly isn't for your winning personality. You have one conversation with me, and I may just release them. And if I break the deal, you and I have a showdown like nothing happened.

"What do you have to lose?"

There was silence. Azula wondered if she'd have to start over. Soon enough, though, Aang lowered his staff. When had she started thinking of him as Aang? "Fine. Talk?"

How to begin? Azula realized she hadn't rehearsed any of this. "...Do you believe in destiny, Avatar?"

"Yeah, of course," said Aang. "I'm the Avatar. I'm supposed to restore balance."

"And I'm supposed to conquer Ba Sing Se," said Azula.

"No, you aren't," said Aang.

"Uh, yes I am," said Azula in irritation. "I literally got a visit from the Moon Spirit telling me that if I don't conquer Ba Sing Se the world ends."

"What?" said Aang.

Azula corrected herself. "Well, it doesn't end. But the war never stops."

"What do you mean?" asked Aang. "You mean I fail to defeat the Firelord?"

"It doesn't matter if you do or not," said Azula with a shrug. "You don't really think the Fire Nation will give up because you kill Father, do you?"

Aang flinched. Why was he flinching? "I… I don't want to kill him."

Azula was dumbstruck. Why would someone not want to kill their enemies? "…You don't? Then how are you planning to take him out of the equation? By giving him a strong talking to?"

And then he rose up and looked like he was trying to look wise. "We air nomads have a belief that all life is sacred, even the tiniest spiderfly. I've never killed anyone in my entire life, and I'm not going to start now."

He probably thought he sounded wise. He only sounded pretentious. Not to mention hypocritical. "Okay, one, you killed an entire fleet at the North Pole. All of whom had less blood on their hands than Father. Two, you killed hundreds of soldiers when you buried them beneath an avalanche of snow. You know, during the battle at the Northern Air Temple.

"They slowly suffocated to death." She rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "Or maybe they froze. I'm not really sure which one would happen first."

Aang stared. "I… I didn't mean to…"

"Doesn't matter what you meant to do," said Azula. "Whether you stab someone in the face with a knife or throw them into the sea to drown, you still killed them.

"Anyway, the point is that this war is not going to end by talking. Either you crush the Fire Nation, or the Fire Nation will conquer the world. There is no compromise."

"But don't you see that this war is horrible!" said Aang. "People are getting killed! Dragged off to prisons!"

"It's a means to an end," said Azula. "My brother has seen the Earth Kingdom first hand. Frankly, I'm not sure I could run the place any worse if I tried. And even if I didn't think the Fire Nation was just, I would still fight for it.

"What do you think will happen to the Fire Nation if the Earth Kingdom wins?"

"I don't want to destroy the Fire Nation!" said Aang. "I just want things back the way they're supposed to be! The nations are meant to be separate but equal! A harmony."

Azula laughed. "You want to know a secret, Avatar? Harmony is a lie. The world is a series of competing interests. Even if you were to force the nations into peace, they would still go at each other's throats in other ways.

"And really, you're pretending like the Fire Nation is the only one at fault."

"You were the one who started the war!" said Aang.

"Do you believe that because you know it?" asked Azula. "Or do you believe it because that's what our enemies told you?"

"The Avatar Roku said-" began Aang.

"Roku was our enemy!" snapped Azula. "He forced our nation only a small rocky island! Our population was growing, and there wasn't enough farmland. If Sozin hadn't created the colonies, we'd have started starving to death in a few generations.

"At best we'd have had to buy food to stay alive." She was exaggerating, of course, much of that was propaganda. No sense in not using it, though. "Given a choice between glory and diminishment, we chose glory.

"In any case, if the Earth Kingdom conquers the Fire Nation, what do you think they'll do?"

"Go home," said Aang.

He really was very dim, wasn't he? "Wow, you have absolutely no idea what you're talking about, don't you? The Earth Kingdom will want revenge for a century of war. They'll keep garrisons to terrorize our citizens to an even greater extent than we do to them. They'll exact huge amounts of tribute, rob our most sacred sights and try to stamp out our culture.

"And they'll use you as justification."

"The Earth Kingdom wouldn't do something like that," said Aang, getting preachy again. "Revenge is wrong. The Earth King-"

Azula scoffed. "Is a helpless puppet. He's never actually made any the decisions until a few days ago. His advisors would do all the work."

"I'd stop it," said Aang.

"So you'd side with the Fire Nation then?" asked Azula.

"What, no," said Aang.

"Because if the Earth Kingdom occupies the Fire Nation, it's them or us," said Azula. "Zuko and I won't let them. Maybe they kill us, and maybe they crush the Fire Nation.

"But then, the Avatar fails, doesn't he?"

"What do you mean?" asked Aang.

"Think about it," said Azula. "If the Earth Kingdom enslaves the Fire Nation, maybe things get better for the rest of the world. But the Fire Nation will hate you even more. And this time they will have a very real grievance.

"We'll drive out the Earth Kingdom sooner or later.

"And when we do, we'll want revenge. The war will never end. And the Avatar will be discredited. The whole point of your office is to be outside the system to mediate. But if you've taken the Earth Kingdom's side, it's just one more battle in the war.

"Unless you plan to do to us what Sozin did to the Air Nomads?"

Aang was silent. "No, of course not. So, you're saying that we should have the leaders sit down and talk?"

"What? No!" said Azula in horror. "My Father will never settle for anything less than total victory. He'd only negotiate as a means to stall until Sozin's Comet. Then he'd rip up any treaty we sign."

Aang remained silent. "So what do we do?"

"At what point during this discussion did we become friends?" asked Azula. "I'm merely laying out the fact. You can triumph over Firelord Ozai. But you can't do it at the head of an Earth Kingdom Army. It has to be the Avatar who defeats the Fire Nation, or it won't make any difference at all. Not the Earth Kingdom, not the Water Tribe. You."

"Why do you care about this?" asked Aang.

Azula sighed. "...It's a been a long day. I'm trapped in this day. Every morning I wake up, and it's this morning. Nothing I do has let me escape.

"But now I know,

"I have to conquer Ba Sing Se. I have to do this, or all the blood that has been shed by all the factions in this war will have been for nothing."

"I won't let you," said Aang.

"If you attack me, I'm not letting any of your friends go," said Azula flatly. "If you attack me, you'll have to fight me, and then you'll have to fight the Dai Li. And even then, you might never find your friends.

"See, Katara isn't here anymore. I knew Toph would find her. So as soon as you broke up, I had her moved.

"I've already arranged for them all to be moved somewhere very safe.

Katara told me during one of our sessions that you spent weeks looking for that Bison of yours. Do you think you'll be able to find all of your friends? By yourself? And can you be sure they'll survive long enough for you to rescue them?"

"I…" Aang paused.

"The answer is no, of course," said Azula. "Your bison was just a curiosity. But some of the great threats to the Fire Nation? The personal companions of the Avatar?

"Well, if I were captured, the guards might get ideas."

"You're a horrible person!" said Aang.

And time to change the stakes. "…Just for that, I'm keeping Katara."

"What?" said Aang.

"You heard me," said Azula. "My offer has changed. You get Sokka and Toph back, but I keep Katara with me as insurance. A hostage to prevent you from interfering again.

"Of course if you accept my offer now, you might just be able to rescue her later. I promise you; she will be safe and whole.

"Do you want to keep playing this game? Or should I knock someone else off the list?"

Aang remained silent. "I… fine. Fine, give me my friends back."

"Good." said Azula, drawing the arrow from her belt."There is a waterfall that leads up to the outside world. Take this red feathered arrow. When the lookouts see it, they'll know I've ordered your friends returned.

"Now get out of my city."

Aang took it and walked away. Then he turned around and sent a wave of air at her. It slammed her against a wall, and Azula fell to one knee. Earth rose up to hold her in place.

"Where. Is. Katara?!" shouted Aang.

"You ungrateful brat. We had a deal." snapped Azula.

And then a surge of fire nearly took Aang's head off. He surged back as Zuko rushed at him. Whips of flames slashed at the Avatar. Azula summoned her fire and broke out.

"I think you'll find the Avatar's word isn't worth much, Azula," said Zuko.

"Zuko!" said Aang.

Azula and Zuko rushed at him in synchronization. Aang dodged and weaved, but wasn't given a chance to move. Finally, he was cornered.

"This is where it ends for you, Avatar," said Zuko.

Both sent a wave of flame at the Avatar, but Uncle landed and knocked it aside. "Zuko, stop this, quickly! You don't know what you're doing!" "I know exactly what I'm doing!" shouted Zuko. "He's the enemy of the Fire Nation! Why are you standing between him and me?"

"The Avatar is essential to the world's balance," said Iroh. "He must survive. Zuko, your destiny is-"

"I've heard just about enough of this," said Azula.

She snapped her fingers to summon the Dai Li. Then she fired a bolt of lightning straight at Uncle. As she did, she reflected she might regret doing this later. Still, he hadn't been on the list of essential personnel.

Uncle caught the lightning bolt and redirected it into a nearby wall. There was a crack as splinters of crystal were thrown into the air.

And then the fight happened.

Katara wasn't here this time, only the Avatar and Uncle. They blasted the Dai Li away, but the result was never really in question. Uncle and the Avatar knocked dozens of Dai Li agents away. But then Mai appeared. Her daggers pinned Uncle to a wall, and Ty Lee touched his chakra points, sending him unconscious.

Aang was forced against a wall as the Dai Li were all around him. At last, the Avatar was cornered. And no one was here to bail him out like last time.

"Trapped like a rat," said Mai.

"I'm sorry, Katara…" said Aang.

He summoned crystals around himself like usual. Azula wasn't worried. She knew exactly how this ended. "You know, it's kind of funny. Wherever I go in this wretched nation, I hear people whisper about you, Avatar. Always hushed, as if you were some kind of god. Some all-knowing, benevolent force.

"But what you did just back there? "That showed me the truth.

"You're just a spoiled little brat who thinks the world revolves around him. A self-obsessed prodigy who's been coddled so much he's yet to realize something as basic as lying being bad."

Mai, Ty Lee, and Zuko stared at her. Azula looked up. "…What?"

"I think you're projecting, Azula," said Ty Lee.

"I don't lie!" said Azula.

Dead silence as a glow emanated from the crystals. Azula had to admit; they had a point. "In formal negotiation, I mean! Just all the rest of the time!"

"Whatever helps you sleep at night," said Zuko, looking away.

And then the crystals exploded, and Avatar Aang appeared in a sphere of light. Air was rushing around him en masse. The Dai Li sent waves of stones, but they were knocked away.

"Oh damn," said Zuko.

"What's that?" asked Ty Lee.

"The Avatar state," said Azula. The Avatar surged forward, sending waves of water at them. They leaped away, even as flames licked up around the cavern. Darks of smoke and fire surged throughout the chamber, as the Dai Fled.

Then a stone hit Mai, who fell backward.

"Mai!" cried Azula. "You wretched brat! I'll kill you!" Raising a hand, she sent a bolt of lightning surging toward the avatar. But as it struck the winds, it dissipated. Zuko sent waves of flame as Ty Lee tried to get near, but the power was too great.

"This isn't working," said Ty Lee.

"Dai Li! Keep him contained!" said Azula.

Zuko and Azula unleashed their flames. The Dai Li now coordinated to send wave after wave of earth. But the Avatar just kept on moving forward. It was all they could do to keep him back.

Mai struggled to her feet, limping. "What's the plan Azula?"

Azula considered that. "Well, I just hit it with a full power lightning bolt, and it just bounced off. So I'm at a bit of a loss.

"I think it's your turn Zuko."

Zuko looked to Azula, then to Uncle. "I uh, I may have an idea.

"Shoot me."

"What?" said Azula.

"Shoot me with a lightning bolt," said Zuko, pouring his power.

"Do it!"

Azula shrugged. She was probably going to have to do this day over anyway. She fired a bolt, her strongest bolt, straight at Zuko. It hit him and surged into him, but moving in a stand; he sent it straight toward the Avatar. As he redirected it, the bolt came out far larger and more powerful.

It hit the Avatar's air shield, and the shield broke. The Avatar flinched as the lightning struck him. The Dai Li's earth washed in. It slammed into the Avatar, who hit the far wall and fell to land on the ground. He was very still.

"…He might be okay," said Ty Lee.

The far end of the cavern collapsed and landed on top of the Avatar.

"Not now," said Mai.

"Dai Li, get him out of there," said Azula. "I need him alive for now."

They worked quickly, and as they did, it became apparent that Aang had lucked out. The stone had fallen in such a way, so it wedged him up.

"…Did that just uh… work?" asked Zuko.

"I think so?" said Azula.

"What did you do?" asked Mai.

"Well, I thought that since I'd be redirecting the lightning bolt, I could add a lot of my own flame to it," said Zuko. "I thought it might enhance the blast enough to break through.

"Is he dead?"

"I hope not," said Azula. "If he is I'll have to start this whole thing all over again."

"What do you mean?" asked Zuko.

"Nevermind," said Azula, moving over to his prone form. She checked his pulse. "He's alive, just barely. I guess the shield absorbed most of the shock. Dai Li, get Katara in here."

Soon enough, Katara was brought in. She immediately ran to Aang, only to be held back. "Aang!"

"In my defense, he attacked me in the middle of negotiations," said Azula. "Hang on, why am I defending myself? I'm the superior race bringing yours out of the dark ages."

"Let me heal him!" cried Katara.

"Why do you think I brought you out here?" said Azula. "Let her go. Ty Lee, stay near her.

"Oh, and don't try running. I've already got men at the top waiting. You two, go on ahead."

Katara drew out a vial of spirit water and poured it over Aang's wounds. They healed, but a scar remained. "Just so you know, Water Peasant. I was going to let most of you go alongside the Avatar. But he decided to break our deal."

"Aang would never do something like that!" said Katara.

"He agreed to become my prisoner if I spared your village," said Zuko. "He then broke the agreement as soon as I fulfilled my end of the bargain."

"Well.. that was different," said Katara.

"How?" asked Zuko.

"You would have destroyed my village if he hadn't agreed!" snapped Katara.

"No, I wouldn't have," said Zuko. "If I were willing to do that, I would have turned around and burned it down as soon as you escaped me."

Katara went still. "I… did you…"

"Of course not," said Zuko. "But if Admiral Zhao had been there everyone you grew up with would now be dead because of what Aang did."

"You're wasting your breath, Zuzu," said Azula. "Her whole self-image is based around how her pain, her loss, is the center of the universe. Aang is the theoretical solution to that. So he can do no wrong.

"It doesn't matter how many good points you make. She'll just dismiss them out of hand and make excuses. The fact that we're Fire Nation means we don't have any rights in her mind. It's okay for Aang to break his agreements with us.

"Of course, then there was that time that he lied to a spirit of knowledge about his intentions. Thereby causing one of the great wonders of the world to be lost for all time and an innocent man to be buried in the sand."

Katara stared. "How… how do you know about that?"

Azula kneeled down by her and ran a hand through her hair. "I know about far more than that, Katara. I know about how he then proceeded to scream and yell at a blind girl who had just saved his life. All because she wasn't able to save his bison from bandits at the same time.

"I've learned all sorts of things from you today." She drew near, so they were face to face. "I'm looking forward to more of them."

Then she stood up.

As she did, Katara summoned her water. But Ty Lee was quicker, and Katara fell limp. "Take her to the cell I had prepared for her," said Azula. "I was told they all had to survive. Yue never said anything about the state of said survival.

"Which means I get creative tomorrow morning."

Zuko looked at her seriously. Azula sighed as she remembered not to fall into bad habits. "Alright, fine. We'll establish a golden age of peace and prosperity for the world. Breaking the water peasant can be a side activity.

"Damn Uncle's teachings."

Zuko's eyes widened. "Uncle!"

He turned and ran back to where he had lain. But Uncle was nowhere to be found. Several Dai Li were unconscious. "He's gone.

"Why… why would he betray us?"

There wasn't anything Azula could say to that, really. She'd known this would happen. "I'm sorry, Zuko."

* * *

**Author's Note:**

And we are nearing the end of the loop. Enjoy.

In fairness to Aang, he had good reasons for all of his lies so far. But Azula isn't interested in being fair.

I am feeling really insecure about this update, to be honest. I keep feeling like I've screwed the whole thing up. And I don't know if it's just nerves, or my sixth sense telling me something.

Please give me your thoughts and tell me if you think this chapter fits the story so far.


	23. Post Victory Plan

**Chapter Twenty-Three: Post Victory Plans**

Azula lounged upon the throne of the Earth King, legs crossed in dominance. At her feet was Katara, clad in a skimpy, red and gold outfit decorated with the symbol of the Fire Nation. It bared her midriff and long legs and showed off a lot of cleavage. Her arms were bound behind her back, and a gag disguised as a veil was on her face. The water peasant had stopped thrashing a few minutes ago. Ty Lee and Mai were near at hand, so even if she got loose she'd be knocked out.

There were few things better than having such a beautiful specimen chained at ones' feet. This right here, this was one of them.

The Earth King entered, handcuffed and guarded by the Dai Li. He looked defiant, even as Bosco was led in behind him with a collar. Azula stood up and bowed sarcastically, while Mai rolled her eyes. "King Kuei, I'm so glad you could make the time to meet with me. Don't mind Katara; she's here as decoration."

The Earth King saw her. He flinched visibly, looked to Katara, then Mai, then Ty Lee, then back to Azula. "You, you weren't the Kyoshi Warriors at all!"

Azula raised her hands as if at swordpoint. "You got me. Princess Azula at your service. With me are Ty Lee and Mai." She lowed her hands and began to examine her fingernails. "As of this moment, I am in absolute control of Ba Sing Se. The Fire Nation is coming to take power here directly in mere hours. With all this in mind, I'd like to offer you your kingdom back."

Dead silence. Katara looked up with a questioning glare. Because, of course, Azula was a comic book villain and couldn't possibly be reasonable. She'd have to educate her later. Azula set a hand on her head.

"What?" said Kuei.

"You heard me," said Azula, leading Katara away from the throne and motioning. "You stay Earth King. You keep the throne over there. We make a favorable peace between the Fire Nation and the Earth Kingdom. And you agree to become a protectorate. You will have exactly the same amount of authority that you had before, but you pay tribute to the Fire Nation.

"You also allow the Fire Nation in through your walls to provide a garrison."

"You would make me a puppet king," said Kuei.

"As I said: You'd have exactly the same amount of authority to had before," said Azula. She felt rather proud of that one liner. "The difference is that instead of being told what to do by Long Feng, you'll be told what to do by me. Someone actually competent. If you have any concerns, I'll hear them out, of course. But the final authority to make decisions is mine.

"Of course, we'll need to explain what's happening here.

"So here it is;" Zuko had helped her work this out. Actually he'd come up with the idea and she'd worked it out. Details. "The Avatar infiltrated Ba Sing Se and demanded you launch a hopeless assault on the Fire Nation. When you refused to do so and abandon your defenses, the Avatar supported a coup with the help of Long Feng.

"You will also reveal that Sozin's Comet is coming and that Omashu has fallen. Since the comet will allow us to finally destroy Ba Sing Se, you will do the only thing you can. You will surrender to the Fire Nation in exchange for generous terms. After all, you don't have any allies left."

If looks could kill, Katara would have murdered Azula. Of course, they couldn't, so she just made herself endearing. "MMMPH!"

Azula shocked her absently, and Katara fell to her knees. "You will express regret, but explain to the people that there is no point in hiding from the inevitable."

"Mmph! Mmph!" screamed Katara at Kuei.

"Quiet Katara," said Azula, giving the chain a jerk. "Your mistress is talking." She was so adorable when she thought her defiance has a point.

"I will never obey you! I will defy you to the end I will-" began Kuei. Azula pointed two fingers toward Bosco. He halted mid-sentence. "You wouldn't?"

"Do what I say," said Azula. "Or the bear gets it."

Kuei gave in and Azula smile. "I'll do whatever you want! Just don't hurt Bosco!"

Azula nodded. Then she motioned to Mai. "I knew you'd see reason. Now, on that note, there are a large number of reforms you will put through on my behalf. You will make it clear that these reforms will be coming from Princess Azula and Prince Zuko of the Fire Nation." Mai moved forward and passed him the reforms as the chains were unlocked. Kuei looked at them in horror, then frowned in surprise. "These are… not tyrannical at all."

"Well, of course not," said Azula. "I'm not some puppy kicking comic villain. I don't do cruel things without reason."

"Mmmph!" said Katara. Azula shocked her again. "What do you call that?" asked Kuei.

Azula shrugged. "My own amusement counts as a reason.

"Now, I think you'd better work on making a speech. I'm bringing the Fire Nation army in tomorrow.

"I assume you'd had experience with public speaking?"

Kuei paused. "Yes, yes, I have. At dinner parties."

"Then get to work on a speech," said Azula.

Kuei paused. "I… I don't make my own speeches."

Azula sighed. Typical Earth Kingdom aristocrat. "How unfortunate. Mai, Ty Lee, help him write his speech. If he lazes about, punch the bear."

"Do we have to punch the bear?" asked Ty Lee. "I mean-"

"You can punch Kuei instead, as long as you don't leave any visible bruises," said Azula.

"Right," said Ty Lee with a grin.

They moved off, and Azula sat back down on her throne. Then she drew Katara toward her. That toned midriff of hers would look much better branded. Perhaps with the symbol of the Fire Nation?

"So, Katara, do you think my plan will smooth things over with the Earth Kingdom?" asked Azula. "Or do I need something more?"

She drew her near and pulled off her gag.

"They'll never submit to…" began Katara. Azula began a series of low-intensity shocks to her more sensitive areas. "ugh… to you…" She struggled to stay on her feet as Azula felt up her bosom.

"Hmm, yes, I suppose getting them to have faith in the Fire Nation isn't enough," said Azula, before pulling Katara down, so her mouth was by her ear. The sensation of their bodies so close was addicting. How she longed to go further. "After all, you've been brainwashed to believe in the Avatar for so very long. I'll have to do something about that." She licked Katara's ear and drew back to admire her blush. "Hmm, undermine faith in the Avatar? Or break your spirit?

"I think I can find a way to do both." She could have kissed her. But Azula would save that for later. Instead, she fitted the gag back on.

"Mmmph!" said Katara.

Azula pushed Katara aside, so she stood by the throne again. "Dai Li, fetch Zuzu and one other person. Head to the Jasmine Dragon. They should be there by the time you arrive." She was running at the limits of her foreknowledge. Might as well make the best use of it before the end of the loops.

It was going to take some getting used to, not being omnipotent. She looked to another. She really should come up with a way to make good on her promise to Katara. But how to break her spirit and undermine people's faith in the Avatar.

And then she came up with an idea. A wonderful idea. A wonderful, terrible, awful idea.

"As for you, go to the Head of Interrogation," said Azula. "There's a high priority job I need him to do."

Life was good.

* * *

Jin had been waiting for hours by the shop, and no sign had been seen of Mushi or Lee. She was beginning to get worried, especially with the rumors of a disturbance in the palace. Some people even said there had been a rebellion against the Earth King.

Jin wasn't sure what to believe. But she hoped Lee and Mushi hadn't gotten caught up in whatever happened.

Then she saw Lee coming toward the Jasmine Dragon. He didn't have Mushi with him or any of the things they'd brought with them. But she ran to him anyway. "Lee! There you are!"

He looked troubled before seeing her. "Jin?"

"What happened in the palace?" asked Jin. "There are rumors of some kind of disturbance! Where's your Uncle?"

"There was a coup," said Lee.

"What?" said Jin.

"The Generals tried to stage a coup, or so I think," said Zuko. "The Earth King wasn't there when I arrived. We were arrested and had to make a run for it.

"We were separated. I came back to get some things before I went into hiding."

Lee had been caught up in this? Was this about him being a Firebender? "So you're going."

"I'm sorry, but… something very important is happening, and I can't talk about it now," said Lee. "I won't forget you."

And then the Dai Li were all around them. Jin looked around. "You two."

"What is it?" asked Lee. There was a sudden authority in his voice. Why?

"You are to follow us, by order of the Earth King." said the Dai Li, but his voice was deferential. Had Lee had something to do with the coup? Jin had assumed he was just a refugee.

Jin was going to make a run for it. Then Lee set a hand to her shoulder. His gaze was reassured. "Don't, Jin. Let's just see what they want."

Jin didn't have a choice, did she?

* * *

Aang awoke withing a dark room. He was chained to a chair and around him was a circular device. His chest ached where he had been shot. Then a man stood just behind, eyes veiled in shadow. A light began to spin around him.

He struggled. He had to get out and help the others. "What is this? Who are you?"

"Calm down. Focus on the light." said the man, voice calm.

"You've got to let me go," said Aang as the light passed again. "Don't you realize that the Fire Nation is going to take everything over."

"There is no war in Ba Sing Se." replied the man. "We are safe behind the walls…"

The light passed again.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

So yeah, Azula has sort of turned over a new leaf. But in a very needs of the many sort of way, I guess. If you've been paying attention to the fic, you'll have a pretty good idea of what Azula's plans for Ba Sing Se are. Which is good, because Azula comes across as a straight-up villain here. To be honest, I wasn't sure about posting this chapter at all. But I felt this was necessary to continue the story.

I could have had Azula see the error of her ways and join the Gaang, but that didn't seem like something Azula would do. Not just from experiencing Ba Sing Se, anyway. In her mind, the Fire Nation is still perfect. All the horrible stuff she saw in Ba Sing Se just confirms her existing beliefs. The difference is in one of intent. Before the Fire Nation's superiority was an excuse to conquer other people. Now she genuinely believes in the whole white-savior angle.

Katara opposes Azula's plans to 'save' the Earth Kingdom, so she can do whatever she wants with her. Since Azula has a psycho-crush on Katara, that involves chaining her to a throne instead of in a cell.


	24. The Escape

**Chapter 24: The Escape**

Aang was starting to get bored within his cell. He'd been sitting in front of this spinning light for what seemed like ages. At first, he'd been scared when he realized this was what had been done to Jet. But nothing had really happened. This Dai Li just sort of repeated the same line over and over.

"There is no war in Ba Sing Se, we are safe behind the walls." said the man.

"You've said that a lot," noted Aang, shifting.

"Calm down." said the man, frustrated.

"I am calm," said Aang. "You're the one who seems annoyed."

"There is no war in Ba Sing Se. We are safe behind the walls." snapped the man.

"You keep saying that," said Aang. "Is this some really weird kind of torture?"

The man grabbed his hat, threw it on the ground, and stalked out. "That's it! I've had it! I'm done!"

This was really weird.

* * *

Azula was pacing nervously within her meeting room. Ty Lee was holding Katara's leash at the moment, looking somewhat concerned. Katara seemed to have somewhat gotten used to being constantly gagged. She had stopped screaming muffled insults. Instead, she was just standing around with a scowl on her face.

"Azula, why are you so nervous?" asked Ty Lee.

Yes, why was Azula so nervous. The obvious occurred. "Because I won't have a second chance at this meeting, Ty Lee. Don't you understand?"

"What do you mean 'second chance.'" asked Ty Lee.

"Look, I met this girl, Jin, during the loop," said Azula. "And we sort of became friends, and I want to take her with us when we leave Ba Sing Se but what if I screw up our first meeting?"

"Mmmph!" snarled Katara.

"Quiet, Katara. No one cares what you think," said Azula.

Ty Lee put a hand on Azula's shoulder. "Azula, you need to calm down and just take things naturally."

Azula took a deep breath and reflected she was right. "Okay, okay, what do you mean 'natural.'"

"Well, think about how things are from her perspective," said Ty Lee. "You've had her escorted under mysterious circumstances by Ba Sing Se's secret police. She'll arrive in a palace that is under the control of the Fire Nation.

"You need to think about how best to appeal to her. And then you have to about it in a way that is true to who you are. You can't base a relationship on a lie."

Azula paused and considered her chances. There had been a sort of subconscious reaction to previous events, hadn't there? "...I suppose I can't keep a slave girl around while meeting her, can I?"

"It probably isn't the best idea," said Ty Lee.

The door opened, and a Dai Li came forward, falling to one knee. "Princess Azula, Prince Zuko has arrived alongside the girl you dispatched us to find."

"Very well," said Azula. "Send them in." Then she looked to Ty Lee. "Ty Lee, could you take Katara out of here? I've got to meet with them."

"Mmph." snapped Katara.

"Oh quiet, I could have chosen to have all of you executed," said Azula.

Ty Lee led Katara away as Azula sat down and sighed. Then the door opened, and Zuko and Jin entered the room. Zuko looked annoyed as Jin looked worried. "Azula, what is going on here?"

"Oh nothing, Zuzu," said Azula with a sigh, "I just didn't want you to get away from me."

"Azula?" asked Jin. "That's a Fire Nation name. Lee, what is going on here?"

"Oh nothing really," said Azula flatly. "It's just that Lee here is actually secretly Prince Zuko of the Fire Nation and has until recently been in exile. I'm Princess Azula of the Fire Nation, and I've secretly staged a coup. One that took over the Earth Kingdom by subverting the Dai Li. Thus conquering the unconquerable without bloodshed.

"Now I've had both of you called here in order to offer you a job in my personal entourage.

"I am doing this because I have spent months trapped within a neverending time loop. When I began, I was only interested in my own vanity and conquering the Earth Kingdom to satiate my own ego. However, I saw the error of my ways, and now I want to conquer the Earth Kingdom, so it's own good."

There was silence for a moment. Jin blinked, seemingly confused by her own emotions. "...That's a lot of information to take in at once."

Azula decided she'd leave the friendship for later. "Serve me willingly, and I'll ensure your family is well provided for. I will also allow you to give me your opinions on the various actions I take.

"That means you will be acting as a representative for the other districts of Ba Sing Se and will be very well paid."

"What if um... hypothetically speaking... I say no?" asked Jin.

"If you say no, well I guess I could take you as a slavegirl and give you the same offer except without pay," said Azula.

Jin blinked as Zuko scowled in that adorable way. Jin looked to Zuko who went dark, then back to Azula. "Right, well um, yes, then."

"Azula, you can't just do this," said Zuko suddenly.

"Actually I can," said Azula. "Relax, Zuzu; she just accepted the job. Now, on to the next order of business. Jin, how high of an opinion does Ba Sing Se have of the Avatar?"

"Well, he's the Avatar," said Jin.

Azula knew all this before, but she felt she should ask to establish a bond. "Yes, what a remarkable statement of the obvious. Do you have any new information for me?"

"Well, he created a whole new zoo for the people," said Jin. "And he fended off an assault by... well... you."

"Reports of my defeat were greatly exaggerated. So how do you think people would react, say if the Avatar were to sell out to the Fire Nation? Murder the generals who supported the Earth King in public." Azula didn't know the answer to this question, though she had an idea of it. Unfortunately, she'd made the plan up today.

"What are you planning, Azula?" asked Zuko.

"It's nothing Zuko," said Azula. "As long as the Avatar is standing tall, the Earth Kingdom will resist. I could execute him, but that would make him a martyr. So I'm going to use the Dai Li to brainwash him into publically executing the Earth King's generals!

"I will shatter their faith in the Avatar and in so doing make our victory complete!" She raised a fist.

Jin looked around in obvious confusion. She seemed weirded out by how at ease she was in Azula's presence. "The Avatar will never do that."

"You would be surprised at just how good the Dai Li are at manipulating the wills of others," said Azula. "I've spent months trying to find a way to reverse the process."

"Um, maybe you should let the Avatar live," said Jin.

"What do you think I'm doing?" asked Azula. "I'm discrediting him instead."

"No, no, I mean, if you brainwash the Avatar into going bad, everyone will regard you as the bad guy," said Jin quickly. "Maybe they'll lose hope, but they'll still hate you."

"I know that," said Azula. "The flood of good things I put out should take care of that. It's all been arranged."

"Couldn't you just do the flood of good things and not discredit the Avatar?" asked Jin.

Azula paused. "...This is going to be one of those things where total victory on my part contradicts with being a good person, isn't it?"

"Azula, being a good person is pretty much moot at this point," said Zuko. "And no, it really isn't. The Avatar is the enemy of the Fire Nation."

"Fine, fine," said Azula, "I take your point. I'll leave you two to discuss things or whatever. I think I'll go torment Katara or something." And she stood to walk out.

Azula found Ty Lee within their quarters. Ty Lee was sitting on the bed, and Katara was sitting crosslegged with narrowed eyes. Ty Lee stood up and front flipped forward all smiles. "Did things go well?"

"Yes, they did," said Azula. "I just acted like myself, and everything went well. How's Katara?"

"Well, she's always scowling," said Ty Lee. "I tried talking to her, but she's always in a bad mood."

"I'm sure I can find some way to make her lighten up," said Azula. "She's going to be with us for a long time, so we'll have time." She looked at Katara. "So, are you tired of being gagged?"

"Mmmph," said Katara.

"I'll tell you what," said Azula. "I'll agree to take your gag out if you agree to only speak with my permission. Now, are you willing to agree to that?"

Katara remained silent. Then she nodded.

"Good," said Azula. "Oh, and if you break our deal, I'll have Ty Lee make it so you won't be able to speak at all." Ty Lee opened her mouth to object, no doubt say that was impossible, but Azula glanced up, and she closed it. Then she reached behind Katara's head and unlocked the gag, taking it out. Katara closed her mouth and then opened it, before closing it again.

"Now," said Azula, "from now on, you speak when spoken to. Understand?"

Katara nodded.

"Good," said Azula, standing up. "Now why don't we head back to the office."

And so back they went. Returning to the office, Azula sat down and began to do paperwork. Then a door opened, and the Head of Interrogation walked in. "Princess Azula?"

"Ah, Head of Interrogation," said Azula. "I wanted to talk to you about the Avatar-"

"Princess Azula, I've had all my best interrogators working on the Avatar," said the man. "However, none of them have succeeded at all. He shrugs off any attempts to brainwash him."

Katara smiled in satisfaction. That annoyed Azula, but she didn't show it. Why would Aang be able to resist the Dai Li? Probably it was because he was subconsciously far more experienced. "Oh, I see, all those generations of personal experience have rubbed off. Thus leaving him with an unnaturally strong will. Well, it doesn't matter, that plan is off the table. Just cut his throat and be done with it."

Katara opened her mouth before Azula glanced to her. She shut it and fell to her knees quickly. It was a good look for her. "Oh come on, do you think I'm just going to sit around waiting for you to stage a daring escape? If I can't ruin the Avatar's reputation, I'll just make sure he isn't around to capitalize on it."

Katara bowed her head quickly.

"You're cute when you're begging without the ability to speak," said Azula. "But I am considering the security of the entire world. So I'm afraid Aang has to die-"

And then there was a shuddering noise. Azula looked up. "What was that?"

"It sounded like Earthbending," said Ty Lee.

"Damn it, Ty Lee, disable Katara and find a closet to put her in," said Azula. "I don't want any rescuers finding her." Then she raced out of the room. Following the sound of the noises, they found unconscious Dai Li lying everywhere.

Eventually, they came to the cells. The doors had been smashed open. Azula kneeled by a soldier. "You, what happened here?"

"It was the Firebender from before." said the soldier. "The old man. He sprung the Avatar's companions, and then they freed him."

"So Uncle rescued the Avatar, hmm?" asked Azula. "That should go a long way to turning Zuzu against him. Well, no matter. Either they'll come back to get Katara, or they'll run out of places to hide. The Avatar's already been beaten once. Zuzu and I can do it again.

"Now, how to talk Father into giving Zuzu a pardon without the Avatar.

"Eh, it was a snipe hunt anyway. I'll come up with something while I fix everything in Ba Sing Se. You, Dai Li, get me the following officials. I've got work to do."

Despite herself, Azula was somewhat glad she wasn't going to have to cut the Avatar's throat. She wasn't sure why, though.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

This chapter was really, really difficult to write.

See, I had this epic idea for a climax where Aang is brainwashed into trying to murder the Generals that supported the Earth King. It seemed an Azula thing to do. Unfortunately, Aang is not the main character and the core conflict of the story has already been resolved. Yet another climax just seemed pointless.

Plus, I just couldn't think of how to go about doing it, and every time I tried to write it, I stalled out. I got past it by having Azula share my uncertainty of how to proceed.

Even so, there will probably be only one more chapter in this fic. This is the story of Azula experiencing the same day over and over again. Now she is out. However, I may well make a sequel that continues the story from the ending of this one.


	25. Tables Turned

**Epilogue: Tables Turned**

Changes had come to Ba Sing Sei.

It became with the walls of the city coming down and the Firebenders marching into the city. The Dai Li had surrendered to the Fire Nation. The Earth King appeared before them for the first time and announced what had happened. The Generals of the Earth Kingdom had attempted a coup, and the Fire Nation had stopped them.

The Earth King then explained that the Fire Nation was on the verge of total victory. Therefore their best hope was to surrender and negotiate terms. The Avatar was gone, having fled defeated. The war was lost.

People sat in fear, waiting with horror for what came next.

What came next was an en masse release of prisoners.

Friends and family who had 'disappeared' months or years ago returned home. Some were changed, but therapists were made available to help them. Many of the Earth Kingdom nobility were forced to pay heavy taxes, but the common people were left in peace. The money that was made was then poured into public works.

Public baths, aqueducts, sewer systems, roads, all these things were repaired and improved. And that was only the beginning.

Princess Azula of the Fire Nation and her brother began a complete overhaul of the hierarchy of Ba Sing Se. Every corrupt official was thrown out of their job, their ill-gotten gains taken and given to the poor. And those who replaced them were all the best people for the job.

More was accomplished in the first week than had been accomplished in years.

The Joo Dee's, women who were taken by the Dai Li, began to return to who they were. One by one, wives remembered their husbands. Mothers remembered their children. Daughters remembered their parents. All of them returned with compensation.

Soon it spread to other villages. Prince Zuko of the Fire Nation went out into the lands and went through the Fire Nation. Fire Nation soldiers who had been particularly brutal were tried and executed. New laws were passed that fixed serious problems. New rights were given to citizens of the Earth Kingdom. Everyone, from the lowest peasant to the highest noble was granted them. Food and supplies were sent to those villages who were most in need. Many prisoners taken by the Fire Nation were returned home as well.

By the end of the month, the Earth Kingdom was being transformed for the better.

And it seemed that they had the Fire Nation, and Princess Azula, to thank for it. Katara watched the whole thing, stunned. Azula fixed things she hadn't even realized needed fixing. People began to cheer when she walked.

Meanwhile, Katara just had to remain silent and watch.

This wasn't fair! If the Fire Nation improved everything what had they been fighting for all this time? But here Katara was, watching in horror. The exact opposite of what she had been expecting was happening. She remembered what had happened to Mom, and that helped her keep hating them.

But no one else was.

The Earth Kingdom was nearly as bad as the Fire Nation because of the Fire Nation. Sozin and his descendants had driven the world into the ground. Now they were getting credit for fixing the destruction they caused. It wasn't right.

Katara had to watch. She'd taken to hardly speaking at all in Azula's presence. The Princess seemed to enjoy her defiance; she liked mocking her. So instead Katara remained silent in the background. Her only source of conversation was coming from those rare moments. She was alone with someone else.

Here she was now, sitting on a pillow in the corner of an office, watching Azula writing. Azula did a lot of writing, constantly working to overhaul Ba Sing Se. And she always seemed to get lucky. Then the door opened, and Zuko entered. Katara scowled at him, and he saw her before looking away. Azula looked up and smiled. "Oh, Zuzu, you're back."

"I told you not to call me that," said Zuko.

"Fine, fine," said Azula. "Any sign of the Avatar?"

"No," said Zuko. "I've had the continent searched heavily, but we've found no sign of them."

Katara felt a surge of hope at that. If Aang was free, that meant that there might be some hope. Now that the Fire Nation had conquered the world, Sozin's Comet was pointless. Maybe he could master the elements and stop them.

But Azula didn't seem worried. "Well, it doesn't matter. We've already beaten him once.

"On that note, I've got some good news. Father has agreed to let you come back."

Zuko's expression changed from his usual scowl to a hopeful look. "He has?"

Katara had heard about this. He'd hunted Aang to try and get his honor back. To think she'd once regarded him as everything she despised. At this point, Katara almost wished she was Zuko's slavegirl.

At least when she'd been his prisoner, she'd been allowed to speak. Azula regarded her more like an ornament than a person. Like booty from war.

"Yes," said Azula. "I sent him a letter describing events. I told him that you were absolutely essential to the conquest of Ba Sing Se. Your insight into the nature of the Earth Kingdom's society was essential. Without it, we never could have subdued this place so easily.

"I also illustrated how you came very close to capturing the Avatar numerous times. This, despite being sabotaged by Uncle.

"He's agreed to lift your banishment."

Zuko composed himself, looking conflicted. "...That's wonderful. But... why would Uncle?"

"Does it matter Zuko?" asked Azula. "He made his own choice." She raised her hand to look at her nails. "Actually it should work out quite well for all involved."

Katara stared as Zuko did the same thing. "What do you mean?" asked Zuko.

"Think about it, Zuzu," said Azula. "Everyone who opposes us will be banking everything on the Avatar saving them. But the Avatar couldn't lead a parade, let alone an army. At most he'd be able to beat Father in a fight, but even if he managed that, we already rule the world.

"The Fire Nation is here to stay."

"How does that help us?" asked Zuko. "He could be a serious problem, Azula. As long as the Earth Kingdom has hope the war will continue."

"And when he surrenders that hope will shatter," said Azula.

Surrender? Aang would never surrender?

"What about the Day of Black Sun?" asked Zuko.

"What of it?" asked Azula. "It could last a week, and he isn't going to be able to knock us out of the war by himself. And where is he going to get an army? No, we'll just let him fly around on his Bison until he comes to his senses, then accept his surrender.

"The Avatar just isn't relevant anymore. Which is really a worse defeat than even Sozin did to him."

That couldn't be possible, could it? Aang was supposed to save the world. He had to.

Then the door opened, and Jin entered. Jin was actually pretty nice and was one of the few people Katara could talk to as an equal. But she enjoyed working for Azula and Zuko, so it was awkward. She was wearing a green variant of Katara's own outfit and obviously liked it. On the one hand, was balanced a tray with tea on it.

"Mistress Azula, I have the tea you wanted," said Jin, before halting and seeing Zuko with a blush. "Oh Lee, I mean, Prince Zuko I didn't-"

"It's fine, Jin. How are things going," said Zuko.

"Really well," said Jin. "We've gotten more done in the last month than we have in years. I mean... well... so far the Fire Nation is the best thing that ever happened to Ba Sing Se."

"Believe me, you're the first," said Zuko darkly.

Zuko was aware of what the Fire Nation was like. More than anyone else in this room besides Katara. She'd heard about what he'd done, lived homeless in Earth Kingdom territory. Azula was just using that knowledge to enforce her rule.

And it was working.

"Thank you, Jin," said Azula, shifting papers. "Now, we'll have to head back to the homeland soon. No doubt, Father will want to congratulate us in person. Jin, you will be coming with you, so you'd best say any goodbyes." Then she looked straight to Katara. "As will you, Katara.

"Are you looking forward to seeing the Fire Nation? You can answer that."

Katara gulped in terror and realized a blush was coming to her features. She looked down, averting her eyes. "...No."

"Well, don't worry," said Azula, moving over to cup Katara by the chin, forcing her to look her in the eye. "Soon enough, you'll learn to appreciate the Fire Nation, like everyone else."

"You won't win," said Katara, hardly believing it. "Aang will stop you."

"Stop me? I've already won," said Azula. Then she leaned forward to kiss Katara on the forehead. Then she drew back and stood up. "Anyway, I think we'll have to start packing. It'll be good to see home again."

* * *

Katara awoke every morning on cushions of the finest silk with the sun on her face. Every morning she brushed her hair or had it brushed. She watched Azula at work, doing things that looked like they were good. She performed whatever duties she was forced to do constantly.

Katara told herself that she was learning about what Azula was doing. Eventually, Azula would let her guard down, and Katara could act as a spy. But a spy for who? If Katara escaped where would she go? She didn't even know where Aang was.

Azula controlled Katara's entire world. Every morning she woke up in prison. And every day was exactly the same as the last.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

So this was not how I expected to conclude this fic.

But I feel it fits. Katara is probably the closest thing to a primary antagonist to Azula. So her being trapped in the same sort of situation as Azula seemed poetic.


End file.
